


Two halves of the same apple

by Littlesnowflake



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alpha Harry Potter, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Book 6: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, F/M, M/M, Minor Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Minor other couples, Omega Draco Malfoy, Soulmate elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-17
Updated: 2017-12-19
Packaged: 2018-08-23 02:18:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 38,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8309929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Littlesnowflake/pseuds/Littlesnowflake
Summary: Last summer wasn't simple for Draco Malfoy after his father had been imprisoned in Azkaban and things didn't get better when one morning he presented as an Omega.Will be able Draco to fulfill his mission and to avoid the suspicious eyes and pursuits of a certain Gryffindor during his sixth year at Hogwarts?





	1. Chapter 1

 

 

_There was a long corridor in front of him lit by the dim lights of the candles. A soft wind invited him to walk and so he did. His light footsteps echoed in the long corridor._

_He arrived at the end and found a large black door with a handle carved in the shape of a snake. He opened the door and set foot in the room where a nauseating smell hit him. His bare feet were submerged by a thick liquid that made him fall to the ground. He turned his wet hand in front of his face and screamed._

_Blood, it was everywhere, on the floor, on his clothes, on his skin._

_He tried to get up but nothing, he always fell on his knees. He raised his head and two eyes as red as the blood looked at him maliciously. A skeletal hand held up his wand and -._

 

Draco screamed and snapped up from the bed, taking a deep breath.

A nightmare, it was just a stupid nightmare.

He ran a hand through his sweaty hair, struggling for the hot air. It was too hot for an English summer. With a wave of his wand Draco lowered the temperature of the room. His eyes fell on the tattoo on his wrist. Even the ugly skull seemed to mock him for his weakness. He had gotten the Dark Mark a few weeks ago and he still felt his body burning sometimes.

Draco gritted his teeth and fell back onto his pillow.

He hated all this. He hated his father for ending up in Azkaban and abandoning them. He hated Potter, the cause of it. And, although he would never admit it out loud, he hated the Dark Lord for having control over his mother's life and his own.

This wasn’t a good summer for Draco. Unlike the other years he didn’t go to see any Quidditch games with his family, he didn’t visit his housemates, and they didn’t come to find him. Nobody wanted to visit him or his mother after his father had been arrested. Only Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle had come to visit sometimes. And the last two weren't great company.

So Draco spent most of his time in his room by himself or in the library, researching, sometimes his mother or Bellatrix for company. And in another place he didn't want to be.

Bellatrix had taught him Occlumency and to master the Unforgivable Curses. That’s because Draco had a secret mission entrusted by the Dark Lord himself, kill Dumbledore.

At the beginning Draco had felt enthusiastic, he was young but the Dark Lord already entrusted him with a high-value mission, a privilege. But once the reality of his situation had started to sink in, his body had been full of dread.

Kill Dumbledore, easier said than done. Not even the Dark Lord had been capable to do it and he ordered the young Malfoy to complete the task? Draco wasn’t a fool and understood that they were in danger, maybe not like the Mudbloods but close. The Dark Lord expected him to fail, like his father, to punish his family for his mistake. But Draco could not fail; if he failed his mother would suffer the terrible consequences too.

At the thought of the Dark Lord’s wrath, Draco bent his knees to his stomach and felt something strange. His pants and the blankets beneath him were wet.

Draco got out of bed quickly and had to support himself against the wall to keep from falling to the ground. His head was spinning and his legs were shaking. It was like he was hit by a jelly-legs jinx. And although the room’s temperature was cold he still felt too warm. Suddenly a pain in his stomach made him bend. Draco felt something wet trickling between his legs and he lowered his eyes in shock.

No, this wasn’t possible. Draco wanted to scream and break everything. Not only had his father betrayed him with his failure but now his body was betraying him as well.

He was a bloody Omega, _he, a pure-blood._ His birthday had been more than a month ago and Draco had never thought that his body could change in this way.

When a wizard reaches his sixteen years it could happen that his biology could transmute within two months. But not for a Malfoy. Draco knew there had never been Alpha or Omega in the Malfoy lineage.

Maybe it wouldn’t have been the end of the world if Draco had been in another situation, but it was now, especially with the threat of a certain wizard. The Dark Lord wouldn’t take it well. After the Mudbloods and half-bloods in the Dark Lord's list of things to be despised were Alpha and Omegas.

 _"Creatures slaves to their lustful desires,"_   the Dark Lord thought of them, especially the Omegas.

Alpha and Omega needed their mate to feel complete, body and soul. Usually, those who didn’t have a mate would feel miserable, lonely and incomplete through the years. Old legends told that an Alpha and Omega were one being at the beginning, but then they were separated by a curse, split in two. Since then they were doomed to always search for their other half.

Trying not to panic, Draco changed his clothes and called a house-elf who made no comment on his shabby appearance.

“Call my mother and tell her to come here.”

“Yes, Mr. Malfoy.” The house-elf bowed and disappeared with a snap.

Ignoring the cramps, Draco began to remove the covers from the bed with difficulty.

It was hard and Draco wanted only to be with his mate in that comfortable bed and to- Draco shook his head trying to remove those irrational lustful thoughts from his head. But he could no longer stand on his legs and he fell defeated on to his knees, leaning his head on the bed. Draco bit his lip, trying to hold back a moan.

He needed his mate, to feel full, complete.

The door of his room opened and his mother entered.

Narcissa didn’t look well, she hadn’t looked immaculate since Draco had been assigned his mission and Lucius arrested. The youngest of the Black sisters had two dark bags under her eyes, making her face appear paler and older than it usually would. Her hair was left to its own devices, not looking as luscious as it did months ago.

Narcissa took a step back and put a hand in front of her mouth.

“Draco. . . “

Draco slowly raised his head in response to her gasp. “Mother, I- do not feel well.”

Narcissa rushed to her son and knelt beside him, stroking his forehead. Draco groaned at the cool touch of her hand and didn’t even have the strength to feel embarrassed.

It had been years since his mother had last coddled him. After he had come back from his first year at Hogwarts he had told her “I'm a big boy now and I don't need your coddle anymore”. But now, feeling his mother beside him made him feel better.

“We have to clean up here,” Narcissa said and called the house-elf again.

Draco heard the elf getting ordered to get rid of the dirty blankets and to replace them with clean ones, and other things he didn’t bother listening to. He trusted his mother.

Narcissa helped him to sit up on the bed and made him drink several potions, after putting an icy cloth on his forehead.

“We need Severus’ help.”

“No,” Draco muttered, turning his face away.

Since his father’s fall the professor had become the most loyal follower of the Dark Lord. He couldn’t risk being discovered.

“We need suppressant potions to hide your status and he is the only one who can help us. If the Dark Lord discovers you. . .“ Narcissa stopped, taking a breath without finishing the sentence. And Draco was grad for it. He didn’t want to hear her tell him how Voldemort would throw him to the alpha Death Eaters that had been allowed to serve him. Or worse, to Fenrir Greyback.

A wizard or witch could always smell when an Alpha or Omega was near.

“We can trust Severus,” Mother told him, taking his chin and turning it towards her. “You can trust me,” she added with a small smile and shining eyes.

Draco tried to return it but he felt his eyelids getting heavy from the sleeping potion she’d given. Narcissa kissed him on the forehead and reluctantly stood up.

“I'll get him, try to get some sleep.”

After his mother left the room Draco felt terribly alone. Her presence had always made him feel safe. Although she could no longer protect him he knew she would do anything to help him.

Draco closed his eyes and fell asleep.

It seemed like days before he woke up with someone gently touching his arm. It was his mother and behind her was Snape.

The professor had a more yellowish face than usual as if something was bothering him. He didn’t know if it was because of him. Draco looked at the window. The sky was dark. He had slept for a whole day and still didn’t feel any better.

“You don’t look well,” Snape said with a small smirk.

Draco rolled his eyes. “Isn’t it obvious?”

Snape ignored his question and put a bag on his desk. He took out a couple of vials and carried two to him.

“This is the suppressant potion, you have to take it every day,” he explained, handing a vial of a deep blueish-purple liquid to his mother. “It hides your status and your smell but doesn’t stop your heat.”

Draco blushed at the last word.

Heat, that’s what had been making him miserable since this morning.

“For that you have to take this,” Snape continued ignoring the boy’s discomfort.

The anti-heat potion was an ugly pale yellow.

“You need to take it every thirty days, do you know how often a heat is?”

Draco shook his head, he must look like an ugly tomato right now.

He had never looked up information on that. . . topic. He had never been interested and never would be. Over the years there had been very few Alphas and Omegas at Hogwarts.

Draco remembered a couple of Alpha and Omega Ravenclaws when he was in his second year. They had been very clingy, more so than normal couples. At the time Draco had found them very pathetic.

To think that now he was in the same situation. -tsk- but Draco didn’t need a mate. It would never be his prerogative. He had to kill Dumbledore and serve the Dark Lord to provide a safe place for his mother and himself.

Snape sighed as if he could read in Draco's mind but he knew it was no longer possible because of his Occlumency skills.

“Omegas go into heat every three months but in some cases the heat can be triggered by their mate’s presence.”

Why did Snape always repeat the word heat? The man was cruel!

“There is no risk,” Draco blurted bitterly. His body hated him at that moment, punishing him by responding with twinges in the stomach. “And now give me the damn potions.”

Mother chastened him with her icy eyes for his language but passed him the potions anyway. Draco drank the potions in two long gulps and grimaced at the flavor of the second one. He looked up and saw Snape looking at him troubled before his expression became impassive again.

“I will provide you with other potions as needed, even once we’re back at Hogwarts.”

“I can learn to do it!” Draco objected, earning another glare from his mother. He must look a mess to her for her to not speak up about his bad manners.

“It’s better not to,” Snape reasoned with a grimace. “The potion needs three days before its ready and special ingredients, people could get suspicious.”

Then why did the professor have a bag full of potions? Draco was going to protest but his mother stopped him.

“Thank you once again, Severus,” Narcissa said gratefully to the potions master.

 _Once again?_ Draco raised his eyebrows confused but the two adults ignored him. He started to hate this too.

Snape nodded to Narcissa and began to march toward the door and stopped. He turned to Draco one last time with a softer look on his face.

“We will talk more about the dosage and your situation later, Draco.”

Draco wanted to ask what more there was to talk about but he nodded listlessly and leaned his head against the pillow. He was tired again despite having slept all day. Draco didn’t see the small sad smile on the professor’s face.

Snape walked out and was soon followed by his mother who wished him a good night. Draco began to feel cold and pulled the covers up to his shoulders.

 _The potions must be already kicking in_ , Draco thought tiredly.

He cursed Merlin, the Dark Lord and also Potter. He wished that everything was a dream and that everything would just be back to normal tomorrow. Draco chuckled, what a childish dream, he was a Death Eater, there was no time to be pathetic. Even if he was an Omega now, nothing would change his plan.

_Or maybe it would?_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! English is not my first language and this is my first Drarry fiction I post here so please if you liked it or are interested leave me kudos and/or a comment :)  
> \+ Chapter was edited


	2. Chapter 2

Draco watched with wary eyes Madam Malkin as she used her pins like he was some kind of roast chicken.

When he had decided to go to Diagon Alley his plan wasn’t to lose a whole morning at the robe shop. This happened only because his mother had wanted to come with him too, she hadn't liked the idea of Draco going alone. But Diagon Alley was just an excuse for Draco, his real goal was Knockturn Alley and he didn’t want his mother to go with him.

Draco furrowed his eyebrows as he pointed out to his mother that he can do his shopping alone. But Narcissa didn’t blink an eye at her son’s whining.

He was always irritated since he had presented as an Omega. Back then he had feared he would go crazy. Snape had not told him that the yellow potion would have had only a temporary effect when the heat had already begun. That night he had slept well but then the next days were just agony. Draco would take even a potion that will turn him into a troll to not go through that again. He remembered still how he had felt desperate, aroused, in need of a mate, someone who made him feel complete.

Would it be better to be an Alpha? They didn’t go into heat like Omegas every three months. Alpha’s rut only happened when they found their mate. But they had to handle a sense of emptiness in their hearts every day, and if they didn't find a mate they could get depressed or aggressive. Only once they found their mate the emptiness will be cured and their heart would feel whole again. The same happens to the Omegas, once mated the heats will not be unbearable anymore.

Both Alpha and Omega’s magic scent will change and become a whole new one.

The bad nature of an Alpha or Omega was always revealed by their scent. If their soul were compromised like the ones of Dark Wizards you could sense corruption and murder, that’s because they didn’t spend their lives in search of their one.

Draco was a Death Eater now, would people notice it from his magical scent? Draco didn’t want to think about it.

The only Alpha of which he had no concerns was the husband of his aunt, Rodolphus Lestrange. The wizard was a special case. He had married his aunt Bellatrix, despite being an Alpha. The Death Eater was perhaps the only Alpha to which the Dark Lord showed respect. Lestrange had never expressed any kind of discomfort of his situation and had no grudges towards his aunt. He was just cold as ice. Maybe torture people was a way to went for him. But then there was his aunt who drew pure joy in torturing people to death. Maybe he was just a sadist like her.

Draco suppressed a shiver.

He wanted to forget what he had seen a couple of weeks ago when the Dark Lord had summoned him to take the mark. The image of his aunt torture a Mudblood was still vivid behind his closed eyes. He remembered the desperate eyes of the woman fixed on himself. They begged him, not to be released, but to be killed. Draco had looked away and rushed out of the room. His aunt had come to see him a few hours later. The present Death Eaters had teased him for his running.

 _“Do not fret over, Draco,”_  Bellatrix had told him in that sweet tone she used only with him.  _”We’re freeing the world of her corrupted blood.”_

Draco felt suddenly pins touch near his left forearm.

Madam Malkin had just finished dealing with the cuff of the right sleeve and was going to take care of the other one. Where there was the Dark Mark.

Draco moved away with a push from her and scolded her for the bloody pin. He didn’t want to stay there anymore. It was too much the risk of getting caught. Draco stepped out of the rack of dress robes and started to look in the mirror behind it but something caught his attention.

He had never smelled something so strong in his life. It was sweet but unique An Alpha’s scent. 

Draco turned around and his eyes met those of Harry Potter. Draco staggered and took a step back. Potter looked like he wanted to move forward him but he didn’t. He stood there, with his mouth slightly open, together with his loser friends stood a bit behind him.

Draco couldn’t move his eyes away from Potter. It was as if he was under the Imperious Curse. Draco shuddered at the intense way Potter looked at him.

_Were his eyes always so green?_

Draco knew he should insult him, but he wasn’t capable to open his mouth.

Ron Weasley elbowed Potter in the ribs but Potter didn’t give him any response.

“Well, what’s going on?” Madam Malkin asked, coming at the entrance with Narcissa behind her.

“Oh, so he is the cause of that smell,” Narcissa said dramatically, wrinkling her delicate nose.

Draco woke up at his mother’s words and looked away from Potter.

Why did he feel awkward? Draco Malfoy never felt self-conscious! Right?

The Weasel growled like a dog and pulled out his wand. “Something against Alphas?!”

Draco jumped slightly and Weasly pointed his wand at him. But Draco didn’t really care, he had other thoughts at the moment.

“No wands in my shop!” Madam Malkin scolded him, but no one gave her attention.

Narcissa stepped in front of her son and glared at the redhead, ordering him to put away the wand with a threat.

“Harry!” Granger cried out loud and gave Potter a light slap on the back of his neck.

Potter shook his head as if someone had thrown a bucket of cold water.

“What?” Potter looked at his friend with the wand and his expression frowned. “Ron! Put it away!”

Weasley turned in a red tomato. “But he-”

“It doesn’t matter!” Potter interrupted him, pulling down his arm.

Potter’s voice was also having a strange effect on Draco. It was like he had a Kneazle purring and scratching in his belly. It was too much, he needed really to get out of there.

Draco took off his robe and handed it back to Madam Malkin, ignoring the voices around him. The woman took the robe touching accidentally his wrist and Draco hissed in pain.

The Dark Mark was still sensitive to the touch.

Draco felt Potter’s eyes on him again. Did Potter know he was an Omega? No, this was not possible. Draco was sure that he had taken the potion earlier.

He left the shop without saying a word, strictly avoiding Potter. Draco felt better walking outside but as he heard the quick steps of his mother join him, he started to walk faster.

“Draco! Wait!” she called, stopping him by the shoulder. “Are you fine, darling?”

“I'm fine!” Draco said, too quickly to be true, and shrugged her off.

His mother looked at him worried. “What happened to you?”

Draco didn’t answer. He didn’t know, and he didn’t want to know.

He continued to walk without looking at his mother.

Narcissa didn’t ask more questions, understanding that she would not get any answer from her son.

Harry James Potter - The Boy Who Lived, one the youngest seeker of all the times, and now The Chosen One - was an Alpha? It must be a strange twist of fate for him. Draco wondered how Potter had taken the change. Obviously, it was easier for him. Surely Potter didn’t suffer as much as him.

Draco thought of his “strangeness” at the shop, maybe Potter had become more mad. Draco had always imagined that Potter would marry the Weaslette one day. They would have a lot of stupid children and live a happy life in some lost field. But first Potter needed to live for the wedding. Which was improbable with the rise of the Dark Lord. Potter will probably be dead in a year.

Draco touched his chest. He felt a slight pain but he decided to ignore it.

The two Malfoys reached silently Twilfitt and Tattings. Luckily, they found no one on the street.

Diagon Alley was almost deserted with all those disappearances.

People were terrified to go around. They were afraid of  _Him_ , of  _them_.

Draco bought a new robe to please his mother. This time dark blue with silvery edges.

While the seamstress ended the last stitching, Draco remembered why he was here - his true purpose- he needed to find an excuse to get away without his mother tailing after him.

“I forgot to buy a new quill.”

Narcissa raised confused an elegant eyebrow. “We have a lot of them at home.”

“But I need a new one if I want to write perfect essays,” Draco explained with his usual pompous air.

He hoped that his mother would fall for it.

Narcissa remained silent for a moment but then she smiled and nodded. “Okay, we finish here and go back to Scribbulus.”

“We're almost done here,” the seamstress said, finishing the final touches.

“It's late,” Draco said emphatically. “I need to go now.”

“I can finish the last tolling alone here,” the other witch proposed, helping unknowingly Draco.

Draco nodded and took away the robe carefully. He said to his mother to wait here and got fast out of the shop.

He looked back, hoping she was not following him. There was no one. Finally, he found the exit of Diagon Alley and reached Borgin and Burkes.

The Vanishing Cabinet was waiting for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the second chapter! :) Thank you for the feedback! It makes me very happy! :D


	3. Chapter 3

Pansy Parkinson couldn’t keep her mouth shut for five minutes straight. When she started to talk she never stopped unless you shut her up. She was the opposite of Crabbe and Goyle.

Draco had dated Pansy during their fourth year. He would never admit it, but as a child he had dreamed of having a relationship like the one his parents had. When he had met Pansy for the first time he had thought they would be like them one day. But it hadn’t worked and the two broke up, no hard feelings. Well, actually Pansy had held a grudge against him, for a day.

However, Draco knew he was supposed to marry a pure-blood witch to continue the Malfoy line. But now that he was an Omega what will happen?

Omega could only lie with his Alpha and vice versa. Their atypical nature wasn’t compatible with the other wizards or witches. Mating with others meant you had to live your whole life broken. At this point, it was better to be alone. Draco considered the marriage of Rodolphus Lestrange and just the thought made him feel sick. Damned Omega hormones.

Draco rubbed his aching temples while Pansy told her summer holidays to a bored Blaise Zabini. Blaise was listening to her trying to look interested since the train had left the station, but he was making a very poor job. He was lucky that she hadn’t still noticed.

Someone knocked and Draco looked at Goyle who opened the door without a word. A third-year girl stepped forward, shaking like a leaf.

“What do you want?” Pansy asked, annoyed that she had been interrupted.

The girl winced and handed her a note.

“Professor Slughorn asked me to deliver it to you.”

Pansy opened the note and turned red from anger. “Do I look like a boy to you?!”

Draco grinned and, intrigued, took the note from Pansy’s hand.

It was only an invitation for Blaise from the new Potions Master.

Draco looked sullen at the girl. “There’s nothing for me?”

The girl shook her head and ran off the compartment. She didn’t even look at him in the face.

Of course, now people feared him not because his father was an important figure in the Ministry, but because he was a Death Eater. Lucius had become the nightmare that scared the children the night. A monster. And even if his classmates didn’t know yet, Draco was going to become one too. Once he would have laughed about it, he would say they were the right ones. That the Mudbloods were the ones threatening the Wizarding World. But now. . . Who was making his life an agony? Who was tearing apart the Wizarding World? Who was now the bad guy?

Draco pushed the guilt away. Being a Death Eater was an honor, serve the Dark Lord was a privilege. The Dark Lord gave his family another chance. They would create a better world, where only those loyal to the Dark Lord could live. Desperate eyes returned to implore him but Draco ignored them and repeated those words in his head as if he was learning a new charm.

“. . .I do not know, maybe you can tell us, Draco.”

Draco raised his head without a clue and met the dark eyes of Blaise.

How long had he been distracted?

Everyone was looking at him, even Crabbe who had been reading a comic book before.

Draco called himself a fool for being distracted. A Slytherin must always be careful about his surroundings, never let his guard down.

“We were wondering what happened to Snape if this Slughorn is the new Potions Master,” Pansy repeated for him, always happy to lend a hand to Draco.

“He is the new DADA teacher,” Draco replied, bitter.

He was disappointed by the professor’s choice. He liked potions thanks to him. 

Blaise lifted his chin, impressed.

“Seriously? How did you know?” Pansy asked with awe.

“This summer Snape had come to see  _us_ ,” Draco said with spite since his supposed housemates hadn’t come, not even once to see him. Not that he could really blame them, he would have acted in the same way if one of them were in his position.

At least Pansy looked sorry but Blaise didn’t even blink an eye.

“Will you go to his lessons?”

“I don’t know,” Draco answered to Blaise. And it was true, he still wanted to attend Snape’s lessons but he also wanted more time for his mission.

“Well, I must go now.” Blaise stood up and stretched his clothes.

Always the same snob. If there was someone more arrogant than Draco that was Blaise Zabini.

“See you later, Blaise,” Pansy told him with a sugary voice.

Blaise gave her a polite nod and went silently out of the compartment. Pansy looked away only when the door closed behind him.

 _Oh, this is interesting,_  Draco thought amused. Parkinson had a crush on Zabini. Last year she had fallen for Nott. Pansy fall in love too easily.

“Zabini, ah?” he questioned her with a teasing smile.

Pansy put her hands to her face, hiding the red cheeks. She was cute when she didn’t control her facial expressions.

“Is it so obvious?”

“Let’s say, I know you well.”

Pansy giggled, swaying on the spot. Draco noticed Goyle smile at the girl like an idiot.

Love triangle, this was too much even for Draco’s tastes. Poor fellow, Draco felt sorry for him. Goyle had always had a crush on the young witch. Too bad that Pansy never looked at him.

Draco looked randomly at the door and saw a familiar figure pass through the window.

Tall, thin, pale skin and brown hair. It was Theodore Nott. Draco hadn’t heard anything from him for all the summer. After their fathers had been arrested Theo had been entrusted to his aunt. Draco had written a few letters but Theo had never answered.

“I’ll be right back,” Draco said, standing up.

Crabbe and Goyle wanted to follow him but Draco stopped them.

“Where are you going?” Draco heard Pansy ask him as was already out of the compartment.

The corridor was thankfully empty. He didn’t want to meet certain ugly faces. Draco passed two compartments before finding his house-mate sitting alone. 

Usually, Theo traveled every year with them but that morning he hadn’t shown up at their meeting place.

Draco came in, without knocking, and took a seat across from him. Theo looked up from the book he was reading, annoyed. He disliked it when his reading was interrupted, sometimes he was worse than Granger and that’s saying a lot.

“Malfoy.”

“Are we back to surname?”

“Did you want to ask me something else?”

Draco sighed exaggeratedly. “Why do you think that I want something?”

“You’re a Malfoy,” Theo said, as a matter of fact, and Draco understood why he didn’t answer his letters.

“And you a Nott,” Draco said, annoyed. “That’s why you disappeared? Because your father went to Azkaban along mine?”

Theo’s hazel eyes became hard as stone. “Together with him? Your father dragged mine to the Ministry!”

“And who do you think ordered to my father to go there?!” Draco almost shouted, before remembering that they could be heard.

“At least you have not been sent to an old relative of which you never knew of her existence!”

“Yeah, because I had spent a wonderful summer in Paris, drinking wine!” Draco snorted wearily, getting up from the seat. “If you had opened at least just one letter, you would know-” Draco stopped and shook his head angrily.

He was becoming too emotional.

“You know what, forget it.”

“Draco, wait.”

Draco ignored him, after giving him a glare, and started to leave but Theo caught him by his left arm. Draco pulled his wrist, managing to hold back a painful moan. Theo’s eyes widened and he understood immediately.

“When?”

Draco sighed as he held his arm. “A month ago, more or less.”

Theo stared at his arm and Draco couldn’t understand what was going through his head.

“Why?”

“Do you care?”

“I, Draco. . . if only I had known.”

“What? You would have asked  _Him_  to take the mark too?”

Theo flinched and took a step forward. “Please forgive me, I’m really sorry.”

Draco studied him with critical eyes. Theo looked really apologetic and Draco noticed that he had a sicklier face than usual. The imprisonment of his father must not have been easy for Theo either.

Draco placed his hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “Next time, join us.”

The corners of Theo’s mouth got up and he nodded his head. Winking, Draco left Theo to his book and returned to his compartment.

The discussion had exhausted him and his head started to hurt from lack of sleep. Draco found his friends where he had left them. Blaise wasn’t still back and between Crabbe and Goyle there was now a mountain of discarded sweets.

“Draco darling, are you okay?” Pansy asked, worried.

Draco saw his reflection in the window. He wasn’t a picture of health either. He had not slept well the previous night. Too much had been the fear of what he must do as soon as he arrived at Hogwarts.

“Come on, lie down a bit,” Pansy suggested, tapping the seat next to her.

“I think you should eat something,” Goyle told him instead, handing him a piece of candy.

Goyle thought a lot of things could be resolved with food. Too bad it wasn’t so simple.

Draco shook his head and accepted the suggestion of Pansy. Eat on the train would just make him feel more sick. He laid back and rested his head on Pansy’s lap. When Pansy started to play with his hair, Draco closed his eyes and relaxed a bit.

“I’ve always loved your hair, Draco,” Pansy flattered him but her voice reached Draco distant as an echo. It didn’t take long for Draco to fall asleep.

Sometime later, the angry voice of Blaise woke Draco up. Annoyed, Draco opened his eyes and saw Blaise trying to close the door. But suddenly, the door busted opened and Blaise found himself in the arms of Goyle.

It was a moment, but Draco saw it. Something white, similar to a muggle shoe. Maybe he had just imagined it. Or maybe not.

Meanwhile, Blaise was back in his place. . . well, more like Goyle had thrown him there after closing the door.

Draco grinned at the scene and asked Blaise, still pissed, what Slughorn had wanted. He didn’t like Blaise’s response and he asked more questions.

_The professor wanted to make up for well-connected people? And he thought to find them in Potter and the other losers?_

Draco got up to see if Blaise was serious.

_Even Longbottom and Weasley? What the-_

“Apropos Potter, did you know that he is an Alpha now?” Blaise said with a contracted face.

Draco stiffened, he had almost forgotten that detail. Or rather, since he had encountered Potter at Diagon Alley he had decided to not think about it.

Pansy made a clucking noise. “What a pity. . . “

Draco looked at her bewildered and she laughed sheepishly.

“He is a git but handsome, no?”

“And a Gryffindor, Half-blood traitor and even an Alpha now! How can you like him?” Blaise blurted in disgust.

“You can’t deny that he is handsome with his messy look, Blaise.”

Blaise got more upset, which was odd because he never lost his calm in this way.

Draco sat back down, ignoring the discussion between Blaise and Pansy.

Potter handsome? The toothpick? Ok, maybe, Draco had seen him more fit at Madam Malkin. And he had very green eyes, and interesting shoulders and a very nice smell. But this didn’t mean that he was handsome! Wait! Why was he contemplating Potter’s beauty? This was the damn Omega in him. Potter was not handsome, end of the story! Come on, he had. . . a scar on his head! It was terrible!

“What are you thinking about?”

Draco looked up at Pansy, she had a strange smirk on her face.

“Why?”

Pansy’s smile grew. “You were muttering something about Potter and handsome.”

She will never look cute again for Draco anymore.

“That’s not true!”

Blaise raised an eyebrow, not impressed. Draco’s ears became red and could probably produce steam like the Hogwarts’s express.

He looked out of the window, trying to calm down. “I was thinking that we’re almost there,” Draco lied, well not really, they could already see Hogwarts from the window.

Draco stood up and told them to get dressed. Goyle took his luggage and something made a strange sound. It reminded Draco of a whimper. It seemed there was someone in the baggage rack, but what if it wasn’t so? He would make a fool of himself. Draco decided to wait to be alone to check it out.

He took his things and waited for the train to stop. Ten minutes passed and the train arrived at Hogsmeade. When Draco was completely alone he acted. He shut down the curtain of the door and pretended to look for something in his trunk. Then he quickly turned around and threw a Petrificus Totalus, taking the spy by surprise.

Now that the intruder was no longer protected by his magic cloak his intense scent permeated the compartment. It was Potter, again, it was always him. And he had heard their conversation. . . Lucky he hadn’t said something important.

Potter had fallen in a ridiculous position with his cloak under him. Draco analyzed his body and then fell again into the same trap when he looked in his eyes.

The two wizards were both frozen, one for shock and the other because of magic. Eyes glued to each other.

It was happening again, Draco felt the same pull from the previous meeting. It was the starting of a bond, he was attracted to Potter.

_No!_

Draco shook his head and Potter looked at him confused.

The Omega in him was attracted to Potter. Yes, it was so. If Potter stopped to look at him with his stupid eyes perhaps he could kick him and not do something stupid, like kissing him.

Draco’s eyes lowered on the cloak and he finally moved. He took the magic cloak from under Potter, being careful to not touch him, and covered him. Draco stepped back and nodded satisfied.

All traces of Potter had disappeared.

As he got out of the train, Draco hoped that Potter would not come back to Hogwarts. Life would be easier so. He passed the carriage where Granger and Weasley were sitting and searching for someone, probably Potter. Ignoring them, Draco grinned and rejoined his house-mates, this time there was also Theo. Draco gave him a small smile and ignored the Kneazle in his belly that told him to go back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! New update, this chapter was a little difficult to write but here it is, let me know if you liked it please ;) To the next time!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I just wanted to say that this story will be a mix of book, movie and my ideas. The story will follow the original plot but with some change. You will see, have a good reading!

 

Months had passed and November was already half gone.

Draco spent his days in the Room of The Hidden Things, trying to figure out how to repair the connection between the Vanishing Cabinets. He had found the room while he was searching for the cabinet at the beginning of the term.

Montague had told him the previous year that the Vanishing Cabinet was on the first floor but Draco hadn’t found the damn thing there. He had searched the whole school for the cabinet but with no results. Someone had moved it somewhere else.

Draco had felt desperate again. He could imagine the Dark Lord’s angry face as he cast the Avada Kedavra, not before being tortured, maybe by his own aunt. He didn’t know if he was more scared to fail the task or to be discovered as Omega.

But then Hogwarts had answered his prayers. Draco had been walking on the seventh floor when the door to the Room of The Hidden Things had appeared. He had found the Vanishing Cabinet there and had almost jumped for the joy.

Things got bad again when he had realized that it wasn’t simple to repair it. Borgin had warned him, the link between the cabinets had been broken and to restore it he needed time and patience.

That’s why now Draco was surrounded by old incomprehensible books, trying to find out the right repairing spell. But will he have enough time? Will the Lord Dark be patient? If he was going to make it the Dark Lord will win and he will be spared.

Draco remembered the speech that Dumbledore had held the first dinner they arrived.

That evening Potter had come in time for the dessert after Draco had left him on the train. He had come back with Snape and had looked very pissed still in his muggle outfit. Surely he had already lost house points for his attire.

The new Potions Master had been presented, to the confusion of almost all the students, and Dumbledore had declared Snape as the new DADA teacher. Then he had talked about Him, Tom Riddle. Everybody had started to whisper but the Slytherin table had been almost quiet. It wasn’t a mystery that a lot of students had relatives involved with Voldemort.

Draco had lowered his gaze on his plate. He tried to push out the Headmaster’s words, but how could he do it when it had felt like he was talking to him. He had even felt his gaze on him. But it was impossible that he knew, right? How could he know that Draco had the Dark Mark inked on his wrist?

He closed the book he was reading and looked at the cabinet. It was tall and dark, and it gave him bad feelings. Draco stood up and touched it, feeling the rough wood under his smooth hand. He could feel the dark magic prickle under his skin.

Draco took a step back and yawned tiredly, rubbing his eyes. He’d started to work at dawn and like always he didn’t have any results, he had even forgotten breakfast again. Lately he neglected a lot of things, like his Prefect duties and the first Quidditch match. Yesterday he had decided to not play and told Harper to take his place. Slytherin had lost but Draco didn’t really care. The only thing that mattered now was in this room. He was passing all his weekends and free time there.

The first time Draco had entered here, he had been surprised to see all this old stuff gathered around, one above the other, making the room look like a big mess but now it was just a usual sight for him.

Draco shook resigned his head for wasting another morning and walked out the room. He was surprised to find Crabbe and Goyle out in the hallway. Usually the two Slytherins waited for him out there, assuring him there was nobody out but since he had woken up early, he had decided to let them sleep. To not waste time to wait for them, of course.

He nodded to the two boys and together they reached the DADA class.

He had decided to take Arithmancy, Potions, Charms, Transfiguration and in the end DADA. Quite funny since he had to use the dark arts. If it was up to him he would drop all the subject and focus only on the cabinet, but it would be difficult to explain why he didn’t attend any lesson.

Telling the teachers, “I’m trying to let in the Death Eaters to help me to kill Dumbledore” wasn’t a good excuse.

Snape was his only ally, his mother had told him about the Unbreakable Vote but he didn’t want to rely on him. He was still angry with her for this. The professor was already keeping his other secret and prepared the potions for him, he didn’t want to involve him in this stuff too.

A big crowd was standing before the class. DADA lessons were followed by a lot of students but they were too many gathered there today. Draco heard people talking in the middle of the crowd and understood what was happening. Someone was arguing.

It was strange to not be one of the protagonists.

Draco saw two students in the middle of the group. One with dirty blond hair and the other with familiar raven-black locks.

Zacharias Smith and Harry Potter.

Of course, Potter was always involved in something. Did he never get tired? Draco had avoided him in the last two months and he had stayed far away from him during the lessons. At the beginning of the school year he had seen the Gryffindor give him strange looks but lately they had become less frequent. Or maybe Draco hadn’t noticed, too busy with the Vanishing Cabinet.

“Well, I know that you Alpha are pretty aggressive, Potter,” Smith was saying with his annoying voice.

Draco was possessed by the irrational thought of incinerating the Hufflepuff. He felt somehow protective of Potter, which was absurd. Only a few months ago he had been the one to antagonize him. If he had never presented as an Omega would he be the one in Smith’s place?

Draco reached his house-mates near the wall where they were watching, like everybody, the confrontation. Well more like Smith talking nonsense. Potter was trying to not hex him while Weasley tried to get him out of there. Granger was strangely not there, Draco had never seen the trio separated during the lessons. Something must’ve happened.

“Where were you-“ Blaise tried to ask him but Pansy shushed him, “Shh, I want to hear!”

Draco rolled his eyes at the girl and leaned against the wall next to Theo, crossing his arms and legs. He felt very tired but he tried to distract himself.

“Why is Smith attacking Potter?” Draco asked. “I thought they were friends with all the DA stuff.”

Theo shrugged and Pansy answered for him. She always knew what happened in the school, gossiping was her hobby. “Smith had commented the Gryffindor-Slytherin match,” she whispered, giving him a worried look. “Do you feel better now?”

Draco had almost forgotten that he had told them he was sick to get out of the match. Draco nodded but Pansy didn’t look convinced. Well, it wasn’t like he did look good in this days, so it was a good excuse.

“He was practically criticizing the Gryffindor play, and I can’t blame him but he is still a Hufflepuff. Anyway, after the match Ginny Weasley broke his podium and since then he is more upset with the Gryffindors, in particular Potter, you know for the Alpha thing.”

Sometimes Draco forgot that some wizards and witches didn’t like Alphas and Omegas. He had always been privileged with his pureblood status. Being on the other side was awful.

“Even if he was pro-Slytherin I find his commenting very awful,” Blaise said with a scowl. “He isn’t capable to explain a match, maybe he brought as bad luck.”

“There isn’t bad or good luck,” Theo muttered, getting a scowl from Blaise. The boy didn’t seem affected.

In the meantime Potter was face to face with Smith. The Gryffindor was a little shorter but more intimating. Draco could feel the Alpha in Potter roaring and his scent had become stronger, he didn’t know if he was the only one to feel it. Smith swallowed at the Gryffindor’s temper but still didn’t shut up. Stupid people never know when to keep silent.

“See, this is why Alpha shouldn’t attend Hogwarts,” Smith chided, raising a hand towards the other.

Potter had a hand in his pocket, ready to pull out his wand, and Weasley sighed but didn’t try to stop him anymore. Smith looked at the students around him, trying to find a complicit, and his gaze stopped on Draco.

The Hufflepuff grinned smugly. “You agree with me, don’t you, Malfoy?”

All the crowd turned to the Malfoy heir. They were expecting Draco to agree with him, every excuse had been always good to attack Potter. But Draco raised comically his perfect eyebrows.

Did the git really think that he would give him a hand? He must be more an idiot that he thought. Draco will never associate with a stupid Hufflepuff like him.

Draco turned amused to his house-mates with his typical sneer. “Did just a Hufflepuff talk to _me_?”

His friends laughed followed by some other people in the crowd. Smith didn’t seem confident anymore.

“Don’t try to involve me, Smith. I have no time for your stupid nonsense,” Draco added with a harsh tone.

Blaise and others watched him with a strange look but Draco ignored them. Potter had his typical goldfish face. Draco shifted his eyes quickly away from him.

He just realized he had indirectly defended Potter, he really needed some sleep.

Smith growled like an animal, he seemed like he was going to blow up like Finnigan’s potions but then he took a deep breath and smirked at Draco.

Draco didn’t like it, not even a bit.

“No time, huh? You look tired. Are you too busy with hiding your face, Death Eater’s scum? Thinking to take your family’s business?”

Draco was stalled on his spot. His words had hit too close at home.

Some student gasped and started to whisper to each other. Since the beginning of the year nobody had talked to him in this way. Draco had received some resentful look at his back but that was it, maybe too scared to confront him, but nobody liked to talk about the silent war that had started.

Crabbe and Goyle pulled out their wands against Smith but Blaise and Theo stopped them. It was strange to see the two boys act together, they did never get around well.

Pansy said something but, to everyone’s shock, it was Potter who put the wand to Smith’s throat. His green eyes were fierce and unforgivable.

“You shut up now or I will do it, Smith!”

There was a strange noise and then Snape appeared from the crowd. Everybody fall in silence but Potter didn’t move his wand from Smith.

“Drop your wand, Mr. Potter,” Snape ordered with his low voice.

Potter obeyed but didn’t stop glare.

“Everybody go to your classes!”

The crowd disappeared in a few seconds, only the DADA students stayed there but nobody talked.

“What did happen?”

“Zacharias Smith attacked Harry, Sir,” Granger intervened.

Draco hadn’t seen her coming.

“And he was trying to defend himself.”

“Is it so?” Snape asked both students.

Smith nodded after receiving another glare from Potter and Weasley.

“Thirty-five points from Hufflepuff to have started a fight and twenty from Gryffindor to have responded and now we are going to start the lesson.”

The student’s entered the room one by one in silence. Draco was one of the last to enter, together with Potter. The Gryffindor gave him a little uncertain smile, stroking his wild hair, and let go Draco first.

Draco felt the typically warm sensation that he associated with Potter since Diagon Alley. He needed to touch Potter’s hair. No! He needed to stay away from the Alpha.

Draco surpassed him without a word or sign, hoping that Potter would never try to smile at him ever again.

Only because they “helped” each other, it doesn’t mean they will be pals now. Draco didn’t need his help! They were enemies, for Merlin’s sake! But Potter wasn’t a guy to back off at the first trouble, he wasn’t famous for this.

Potter sat down at the table where Draco was, getting a nasty look from him and a confused one from the other students.

_What was the damn Gryffindor thinking?!_

“What? Is the seat taken?” Potter questioned, looking around like an idiot.

Potter knew very well that the seat was free and Draco wanted to hex him together with the Slytherins that had left him behind.

Draco could hear some student sniggering.

Today they’ll practice again the Non-Verbal Spells, in pairs, and Potter decided it was a good idea to practice with him. And to add insult to injury, Snape seemed amused, to Draco’s horror.

Draco had already learned Non-Verbal Spells this summer. Bellatrix had taught him, together with the Unforgivable Curses and Occlumancy.

Could someone remember him again why was he following this class?

Within minutes Draco found himself in front of Harry Potter with the wand ready. He had indeed the possibility to jinx him.

Potter grinned like he knew what Draco was thinking. His green eyes were glowing.

“Scared, Malfoy?”

 _Oh. . ._ Draco returned the grin.

“You wish.”

For a few hours Draco forgot about the Vanishing Cabinet and his mission.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Hufflepuffs but not Smith XD


	5. Chapter 5

_“Harry, you are an Alpha.”_

Harry had blinked his eyes confused to Mr. Weasley’s words because, really, he didn't know what the man had meant at that time.

Harry had awoken quite distressed a week after his birthday. He had felt his pants too tight and his body too much sweaty. But this hadn’t been the reason that had made him agitated so early in the morning. Something had been missing and he had not known what. The thought had made him feel mad.

_Harry jumped out of his bed, his body acting on his own._

_He had the need to find him, whoever was “him”._

_He went down the stairs, passing by the kitchen where Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were preparing breakfast. They_ _greeted Harry with their usual warm voices but Harry didn’t acknowledge them._

_“Harry, where are you going?” Mr. Weasley asked as he saw Harry get out only in his pants._

_Harry didn’t answer, he just growled and walked out of the Burrow. He could feel "he" needed him and Harry needed him too._

It had been then that Mr. Weasley felt something different in Harry. His scent. The house had been engulfed by Harry’s strong Alpha scent.

_“Wait, Harry!”_

_Harry walked through the green camp, not knowing where he was going. He didn’t care that he was still in pants and barefoot._

_Hands on hips tried to stop him but Harry just shrugged them away._

_“Harry, please come back.”_

_“No!”_

_For the first time he felt like he knew what he really wanted, even if he actually didn't know. It made no sense bun Harry didn’t care._

_“Dad, where is Harry going?” a familiar voice worried, followed by other panicking voices but Harry didn’t listen to anyone._

_He heard only a strong voice say, “Harry, I'm sorry,” before he blacked out._

Harry had opened his eyes back on his bed with Ron’s father by his side, reading the Prophet.

After Mr. Weasley had explained to him what being an Alpha meant Harry had not known how to feel.

Upset? Miserable? Happy? He had been just tired of feeling angry like last year. His heart will always mourn for Sirius’s death, and Cedric’s, and his Parents’.

Maybe he could feel relieved? There was someone out there who would love him, not because he was the boy who lived but because he was his mate, his other half. He hadn’t chosen to be an Alpha but he hadn’t even decided to be Voldemort’s nemesis. At least the former wasn’t lethal for his life like the latter. The thought of being with another wizard had not made him feel strange. Actually, maybe, it explained a few things about the Cho Chang fiasco.

Mr. Weasley had then told him that it could be more difficult for him to deal with his feelings and he could be possible, rarely, aggressive. Arthur had used, polite like always, the word “fiery”. Harry had always had quite a temper so nothing new.

He had learned then that sometimes Alpha and Omegas weren’t well accepted by some people, he could get mean looks for it but, again, Harry had been already used to it.

The important thing was that Ron, Hermione, the Weasleys and his friends accepted him.

At first Hermione had looked at him like he was some kind of new subject. She had asked him how did he felt and, blushing, if something had changed in his body. He had not talked about the latter but he had told her, embarrassed, he had this irrational need in his heart to find Him. His mate, his Omega. Ron had just patted his shoulder and had stated that nothing changed for him. He will always be his best friend. A best friend with a strong perfume now. Fred and George had told him that they would embrace him even if he woke up with snakeskin. Ginny had worried him. The girl had looked sad for a few days and had avoided him. But then she had come to him, giving him a hug, and had said that she will always be by his side.

 _“Maybe you will find your Omega at Hogwarts,”_ she had said with a brilliant smile.

Witches, strange beings.

Harry had passed the next days in peace, only because nobody else had known about his new status.

When they had decided to go to Diagon Alley Harry had felt like the first time Hagrid had brought him there. The few people who were there had watched and whispered behind his back. He had been glad when they had entered Madam Malkin’s shop, but then a familiar boy with white-blond hair, pale pointy face and long legs had appeared.

Draco Malfoy.

_Harry was prepared for the boy's typical attitude towards them. Now that he was an Alpha he would have another excuse to bother him._

_But as his blond head turned towards them Harry’s world stopped. He felt like being hit by a twilight, it was like he was seeing Malfoy’s sharp eyes for the first time._

_Then Narcissa Malfoy reached them, blathering about something that Harry didn’t hear. Because, even if Malfoy was able to break the eye contact, Harry wasn’t able to look away from him._

_Only Hermione’s slap at the back of his head woke him, Harry noticed then Ron’s wand raised against the Malfoys and told him to drop it immediately._

_Malfoy, without saying a word, gave his rob back to Madam Malkin and ran out of the shop._

A suspicious behavior.

Harry had noticed the slight hiss Malfoy had made when the witch had touched accidentally his wrist. His left one.

_Did he take the Dark Mark?_

Strangely, the thought had made Harry feel more anxious than disgusted. But he had decided to ignore it, especially when he had seen Malfoy at Borgin and Burgen's.

Harry had the feeling that Malfoy’s strange behavior led to nothing good for them, and for him too.

The first September had come and Harry had been invented in Slughorn’s compartment, together with other students. By then everybody had known that he was an Alpha, but some witches had still looked at him with hungry eyes. Like Romilda Vane.

Blaise Zabini had been invited at the Slug Club too. The boy had not spared them a superior glare and Harry had been not scared to reciprocate. Horace Slughorn had been very surprised, the Professor had not known about Harry’s new change, but he had still greeted the student with a polite smile.

Harry had spent almost all the travel with them, it was only at sunset that Slughorn had let them go. Harry had had the idea to follow Zabini in his compartment. Certain that Malfoy would have been there. That last week he had never stopped to think about the Slytherin.

With a bit of struggle he had managed to enter their compartment and to hide in the luggage rack. Malfoy had been laying on Parkinson’s lap to Harry’s annoyance, only because he wanted to find him red-handed.

Harry had hoped to hear something interesting but the Slytherins had started to talk about Slughorn and. . . Harry.

_“Apropos Potter, did you know that he is an Alpha now?” Zabini said with a contracted face._

_The guy looked always like he had a wand stuck on his. . . Harry turned his head and looked at Malfoy, ready to hear his insults now that he thought Harry wasn't there. But Malfoy didn’t talk and Parkinson made some kind of giggle._

_“What a pity. . .”_

_Malfoy looked bewildered at her and she looked embarrassed._

_“He is a git but handsome, no?”_

_Harry didn’t know if to feel embarrassed or angry. Only a Slytherin could insult you and flatter at the same time._

_“And a Gryffindor, half-blood traitor and even an alpha now! How can you like him?” Zabini blurted disgusted._

_Harry narrowed his eyes at him. If he had any doubts about Zabini not liking him now he didn’t._

_"You can't deny that he is handsome with his messy look, Blaise."_

_Zabini didn’t take Parkinson’s answer well, looking at his upset face. However, Harry was_ surprised by _Malfoy who had ignored all the discussion. He just muttered something that Harry wasn’t able to hear. He really wanted to know what was he thinking._

_Lucky Parkinson was there for him.  “What are you thinking about?” she asked with a smirk on her pug face._

_“Why?” asked Malfoy suspicious._

_“You were muttering something about Potter and handsome.”_

_Harry would had almost fall if it wasn’t for his grip._

_What the hell?_

_"That's not true!”_

Right! Tell her, Malfoy.

_Malfoy’s ears looked like they could burn from the embarrassment. It was strange to see this side of him, it reminded Harry of Ron. Ron would choke him if he ever told him that._

_“I was thinking that we're almost there,” Malfoy said, resolute._

_Harry looked at the window. It was true, they could already see Hogwarts, but he wasn’t sure if Malfoy was really thinking about that._

_Malfoy had then stood up and had told them to get dressed. As Goyle had taken his luggage Harry had been hit by it and had whimpered. Malfoy had looked at his direction but hadn’t said anything._

Harry had waited for the Slytherin to get out of the train but then Malfoy had decided to stay behind, telling his housemates he will join them in a minute. Left alone, Malfoy had opened his trunk to search for something. Harry had tried to see what was it but he had never managed to look because Malfoy had hit him with a Petrificus Totalus.

Harry found himself immobilized on the ground with Malfoy towering over him. He expected Malfoy to jinx him but the other was still in his spot. Harry looked at Malfoy’s face and was caught by his eyes. Harry was sure that he had been hexed somehow, he felt like he was going to sink in Malfoy’s mercury iris. He wanted to figure out what secrets hid the Slytherin’s impenetrable gaze.

Then Malfoy had shaken his head like he knew what had been happening, and to Harry’s surprise he had taken his invisible cloak and had covered him. The damn bastard had left Harry there. Ok, maybe he had deserved it for spying on him, but Harry still hated Malfoy, forgetting whatever had been happening only a few seconds before.

Luckily, Tonks had come to help him and Harry had been able to reach Hogwarts. Snape had been the one to welcome him and had detracted points from his house. A good start for the year.

Harry had reached pissed the Gryffindor table. Hermione and Ron had asked what had happened but he had just waved his hand and had told them “Later”.

He had looked at Slytherin table where Malfoy had been quiet. What a surprise. . . Harry was barely able to recognize him anymore. He had had the possibility to do to him anything in the train, but he just had left him there. Professor Slughorn had been right, these were indeed mad times they lived in.

The following weeks Harry had found out he was the only Alpha of Hogwarts and that there weren’t any Omegas. He was alone, again, and his heart ached badly for this. Harry tried to distraught himself with Quidditch practice, his Potions book and Dumbledore’s lessons. And sometimes (Ron and Hermione said always, but they were exaggerated) with thoughts about Malfoy.

Now, after two months of school, Harry was before Snape’s class, waiting for the start of the lesson. Students of every house were there to attend.

Harry saw Malfoy’s gang near the wall but the blond Slytherin wasn’t there with them. Harry had noticed how Malfoy was barely present anywhere. He had only seen him during lessons and in the meal times, and not all the times. He hadn’t even attended the last Quidditch match! Harry really wanted to know how he was spending his time.

He was listening to Ron talking about Lavanda Brown when Zacharias Smith approached them.

Was Smith still not satisfied with match's commenting? He had constantly insulted him, Ron and the rest of the team. Pointing every now and then how Alpha Potter was doing wrong this and that.

“Hello, Potter,” Smith greeted him, smiling.

Harry gave him a polite nod. Something told him Smith wasn’t there to congratulate or apologize.

“I wanted to apologize, I wasn’t nice to you last time.”

Harry was surprised, maybe he had underrated Smith. The boy was still a Hufflepuff, maybe his housemates had made him see sense.

“Apology accepted if it will never happen again,” Harry reasoned, getting a scowl from Ron.

Smith was still smiling, but his smile didn’t reach his eyes.

“Of course, I don’t wish to anger you.”

Harry moved his head confused and Zacharias continued.

“Now that you are an Alpha, you are in a delicate state of mind and I don’t want to interfere.”

“What do you mean?” Harry asked, clenching his jaw.

To hell his previous thoughts about being a Hufflepuff. The boy was irritating, that’s all.

A crowd had started to form around them but Harry didn’t care.

“Well, I know that you Alphas are pretty aggressive and savage, Potter,” Smith was saying with his annoying voice.

“Forget about him, mate. He is just an asshole,” Ron tried to coax him, gripping his shoulder.

_Wasn’t Ron the one to scowl before?_

Harry clenched his teeth. His wand was calling him from his pocket and it was difficult to resist.

“Right, listen to your recommended friend.”

Harry snapped, he felt the blood rush to his head. He shook off Ron’s hand and approached Smith face to face.

They were surrounded by a lot of students now but Harry didn’t care. The assholes had started again to insult his friends and him.

“See, this is why Alphas shouldn’t attend Hogwarts,” Smith said, raising a hand towards him like he was some kind of wild animal.

Harry glared at him with fire in his eyes and Smith shivered slightly. The Hufflepuff shifted his gaze to them and then grinned smugly.

“You agree with me, don’t you, Malfoy?”

Harry turned his head fast, hearing his neck snap, and saw Malfoy leaning casually against the wall. The Slytherin didn’t have a healthy face. It was like he had not slept all the weekend.

Malfoy raised his eyebrows in his typically mocking way. Harry thought it was quite hilarious now that he wasn’t the receiving party.

“Did just a _Hufflepuff_ talk to _me_?” he said amused to his friends.

The Slytherin and some people in the crowd laughed, Harry made a little smile. That was the Malfoy he remembered, not the shadow he sometimes saw at class, or the quiet boy in the train. Did he really miss his sharp tongue?

Smith didn’t smile anymore and Harry was happy about this.

“Don’t try to involve me, Smith. I have no time for your stupid nonsense.”

Harry was stunned, not much for the words, but for who had said it. Malfoy was defending him, did he even notice? By the way, Malfoy looked shortly at Harry he must have realized only now.

Smith growled and Harry knew he was going to say some other shit.

“No time, huh? You look tired. Are you too busy with hiding your face, Death Eater’s scum? Thinking to take your family’s business?”

Harry couldn’t believe what he had heard. Yes, Malfoy had been a bully in the past years but Harry didn’t believe in the method "giving a taste of your own medicine".

Malfoy had barely spoken to anyone since the school had started. He was doing his own business just seconds ago. Harry was angry with him for a lot of reasons, but not because he was the son of Lucius Malfoy.

Harry knew that Smith had said this out of spite like he had insulted the Gryffindors before. And not for some sort of justice.

But unlike him, Malfoy wasn’t defending himself. His eyes didn’t shine anymore, he was silent, almost white, frozen like he was hit by a Petrificus Totalus. And Harry understood that even Malfoy had been affected by Voldemort’s return.

“You little-”

Harry interrupted unintentionally Parkinson by raising his wand against Smith’s throat.

“You shut up now or I will do it, Smith!” Harry growled full of rage.

It made him see red hearing this piece of shit using the War going on just to hurt someone else. He really needed him to shut up.

“Drop your wand, Mr. Potter.”

Harry didn’t need to look around to know who it was. He just lowered the wand but he didn’t stop to glare at Smith.

“Everybody go to your classes!”

The crowd disappeared in a few seconds, only the DADA students stayed there but nobody talked.

“What did happened?”

“Zacharias Smith attacked Harry, Sir,” Hermione said coming forward.

Oh, Harry didn’t see her arrive. Hermione didn’t show up all the day after what happened with Ron yesterday.

“And he was trying to defend himself.”

“Is it so?”

Harry glared at Smith who nodded too quickly.

“Thirty-five points from Hufflepuff to have started a fight and twenty from Gryffindor to have responded and now we are going to start the lesson.”

Of course Snape would take house-points from them too but Harry didn’t regret it. He knew he did the right thing.

Harry searched Malfoy like he was looking for the snitch. The Slytherin was at the back, waiting for all the students to enter, or more probably lost in his own thoughts.

Harry decided to wait for him. Ron and Hermione looked at him strangely but he just told them to go forward.

Since Diagon Alley he knew there was something wrong with Malfoy. He had thought he was plotting some kind of revenge, now, he wasn’t sure. But something in Harry told him that Malfoy was still hiding something.

When Malfoy reached the door Harry didn’t know what to say. He tried to smile and made Malfoy pass first.

Malfoy just ignored him and Harry felt a little stupid. But then he remembered that it was Malfoy and it was normal for him to act in this way. Knowing him, he was feeling humiliated by Harry’s action.

Harry entered the class and saw Malfoy sitting alone. He should have gone to his usual place but instead he decided to sit next to him. Malfoy, of course, glared at him. Some students had their eyes out of the orbits for what they were seeing.

“What? Is the seat taken?” Harry asked ironically.

It was nice to see Malfoy looking like he wanted to hex him.

 _Nice_ and _Malfoy_ , in the same sentence? Harry must have been hit by a Bludger yesterday and didn’t remember.

Snape told them they will exercise again Non-verbal spells. Harry had become better with them. He felt thrilled to practice with Malfoy.

“Scared, Malfoy?” he asked, unable to stop his grin.

Malfoy returned the grin and his silver eyes were alive again.

“You wish.”


	6. Chapter 6

_-Stir two times clockwise._

_-Add Peppermint._

_-Stir three times anticlockwise._

Draco followed the instruction to brew the Love Potion but his head was somewhere else.

That morning he had received a letter from his mother. Draco had memorized all the words, one by one.

_Dear Draco,_

_how are your studies going? I hope well. . ._

_I'm sorry but this year there won't be the usual Christmas party at the Manor._

_If you want, you can stay at Hogwarts and concentrate better on your studies._

_We expect great things from you._

_With love,_

_your Mother_

No Christmas Party. Draco should have known it, but how many things hadn’t he expected after the end of his fifth year?

Draco didn’t remember a time where there hadn't been a Christmas Party at the Malfoy Manor. Not even when he had stayed at Hogwarts.

This year he won’t see his home lightened by a thousand of little lights. He will not see the lights of the white Christmas tree with his crystal baubles, shining the ballroom like a kaleidoscope. He will not smell the sweet smell of cookies emerging from the kitchen. He will not see his mother in her new dress and his father smile proudly as he presented his son to his guests.

No, he will stay and concentrate on his “studies”, as his mother called it. More like a suicidal mission. Draco didn't have the courage to tell her that “his studies” didn't go well. The cabinet wasn’t giving any successful results. Draco followed all the instructions Borgin had given him but he had managed to send only a few objects, and they never came back. He had thought to use the cursed necklace he had seen at the shop but he hadn’t any possibility to get out of Hogwarts with Snape’s eyes on him.

The professor was like a sentinel, always watching his back.

“Mr. Malfoy, the potion!”

Professor Slughorn’s scream reached Draco’s ears too late. The love potions became a fire red color and blow up. Draco raised his hand and cried from the pain. The potion had burnt his right hand.

How did he fail the potions? Draco had never failed a potion, he wasn’t Finnigan or Longbottom!

He had gotten an Outstanding on his O.W.L. exam.

But here he was, aching from the pain, with his robe ruined.

“Mr. Malfoy, please, go to the hospital wing,” Slughorn said with a false polite tone and turned back to admire Granger’s work.

The slug didn’t even ask him how was his injury, not that Draco wanted his pity. Draco turned out the fire and started to take his things but Theo stopped him. The Slytherin pointed at the door with his peaceful eyes.

“Go, Draco. I will take care of your things.”

Draco nodded, muttering thanks, and went out of the room. The injured hand was a vivid red and horrible bladders were starting to form.

“Malfoy, wait!”

Draco raised his eyes at the ceiling and stopped. He would recognize this voice even in a concert of the Weird Sisters.

“Potter,” he sneered like always. “What do you want?”

Potter reached him, short of breath, and lowered his eyes to Draco’s hand.

Draco looked at his parted plump lips fascinated.

_No! Bad Draco!_

“I- does it hurt?” Potter blabbered.

Draco threw him an annoyed look.

Really, this guy needed a book entitled: how to not ask stupid questions. Maybe Draco should write it if he will manage to survive this year.

“I mean- of course, it hurts,” Potter corrected himself with a sheepish expression. “I just wanted to,” he trailed off and started to mess up his tangled hair.

Draco had the sudden need to fix the nest that Potter called hair. It was too obscene, even for a Gryffindor.

“I – I just wanted to accompany you to the infirmary,” Potter said finally without stuttering, which was a great conquest since he had the social skills of a charming troll, and-

_Wait, what?_

Lately the Gryffindor had tried to get closer to Draco, without success. Every time Draco had seen his mop of hair showing up from a corner he had changed routes, stairs, and daily plans. He would have changed even time if he had a time-turner. The only place where he couldn’t avoid Potter was the DADA class. The “Chosen-One” had chosen to sit definitely beside him. But, fortunately, Snape didn’t permit small talk in his class and Draco was always one of the last to arrive and one of the first to leave the lesson. There was no time for talk or better to argue.

It was not subtle from him but it was efficient. Potter probably thought he hated him with all his guts, which was true, but it was not the only reason. Every time he spent some seconds with Potter his stupid heart pretended to pass more time with him and he could not permit it. He wasn’t anymore the kid of the first year who had desiderated to shake his hand. Or the guy who had pestered him for all these years to get some reaction from him. He didn’t care about the Boy-Who-Lived and didn't want his attention.

 _You are in denial, Malfoy,_ said the usual little voice in his head, which resembled Pansy. She always had an annoying voice. Draco always told the voice to shut up. He was at Hogwarts and he had a mission now, a mission that didn’t involve fraternizing with the enemy, or fancy the enemy.

Draco threw at Potter a nasty performed look.

“I don’t need a chaperone, Potter. And what about your potion? No wait, I don’t care.”

Potter opened the mouth to say something but Draco started to walk again.

“I already finished mine,” Potter said, following him stubbornly.

“Of course, the Chosen One has already finished his work,” Draco jeered, marching to the nurse.

Potter muttered something but still stayed behind him.

“Why do you have to be so an ass?”

“Because,” Draco emphasized, keeping his hand hidden in his rob, “someone must remember that we are not friends, Potter. We are actually enemies, you know.”

“Always thinking to be on the top of someone’s thoughts, Malfoy?” Potter said, starting to lose his patience. “Voldemort is my enemy, you are just. . .” he didn’t finish his sentence.

I’m just his new servant. . .

“Just what?” asked Draco full of bitterness, planting his feet on the ground and turning towards him.

Potter pulled back preventing to slam into him.

“You think you can chat with me after you sent my father to Azkaban!” Draco hissed.

It was Harry Potter the cause of all his sorrows. He wouldn't be in this place if the git hadn’t gone to the Ministry. Draco should curse him, what was he waiting?

Potter’s green eyes hardened like two emerald stones.

“He is a Death Eater, that is his place.”

The floor was deserted, it felt as though they were the only two inhabitants of the castle.

“That’s exactly why we should not cross paths,” Draco breathed out, clutching his hands. “Go play the hero somewhere else or I will-“

Draco wasn’t able to end his treat. He closed the mouth to keep back a groan, he felt his eye sting from the pain. The injured hand was hurting badly. Last time he had felt a similar pain it was when he had taken the Dark Mark.

Draco didn’t want to remember it. He, kneeling on the cold floor, the wand pointed to his subdued wrist, His serpentine eyes and so much pain. He hated feeling pain. Draco would never admit it but feeling the pain was the thing that scared him most.

“Malfoy, you’re white as a sheet,” stated Potter concerned.

Something slipped from his hand and Draco lowered his eyes. There was a puddle of blood on the ground, of his own blood. Draco raised his bloodied hand and felt sick. The love potion had practically pierced his flesh. He was starting to see blurry, he didn’t see one, but two bloodied right hands. And two Potters, as one wasn’t enough.

Draco wobbled and a strong grip managed to not make him fall to the ground.

“Malfoy! Did you hear me?!”

The panicked words ringed in his ears and Draco put a hand on his temple. His head felt heavy as a box full of galleons.

Someone lifted his arm over a solid shoulder while a slightly muscular arm grabbed his waist. Not someone but Potter, Draco could feel his intoxicating scent. He tried to push Potter away but Draco’s attempt was too weak compared to the other boy’s hold on him.

“Don’t act like a child, now we go to Madam Pomfrey,” Potter said with determination.

Draco could not see it but there was a panicked look in the Gryffindor’s face.

The two boys reached the hospital wings with no more arguments. Only because Draco felt too tired for it. They only left a trail of blood behind them and an annoyed Filch. The squib was lucky that the lessons weren’t over yet. Along the way, Draco’s head slipped unconsciously to the other’s boy shoulder and the Gryffindor didn’t complain.

The two boys reached the place in silence and were greeted by Madam Pomfrey.

“Help Mr. Malfoy on the bed, Mr. Potter.”

When he was leaning on the bed, Draco was constricted to drink some potion that made him feel a little better. Suddenly Draco felt awkward, remembering how the Golden Boy had assisted him. He glared at Potter but Potter stood there not affected by Draco’s glare, if anything, he seemed amused.

Madam Pomfrey ignored his mood and started to look at his hand.

“This looks very bad but it will heal in a few days.”

“It happened in the Potions class,” Potter interfered, trying to be useful.

“I can talk for myself, Scarhead,” Draco barked.

He was furious, furious with Potter for his stupid chivalry and with himself for being, again, weak.

 

Why was Potter bothering with him so much? He didn’t know he was an Omega, but perhaps he still felt an irrational pull towards him. Alpha and Omega's bonds were a complex thing. People still tried to understand their magical bond. Was a union dictated from the stars or were Alpha and Omegas able to choose on their own their mate? Did they need each other just because of their nature or because they really loved and desired their mate for what they were?

To Draco, Potter was just following his Alpha instinct, his nice act towards him wasn’t dictated by some stupid Gryffindor code. Or perhaps he was trying to get near to him to discover if he was a Death Eater, like his father. But Potter wasn’t good at acting, he was too sincere to play double agent. Draco didn’t need to use Legilimency to know it.

Madam Pomfrey gave him a Blood-Replenishing potion since he lost half of his blood around the castle. Then she cleaned his wound and rubbed some dittany on his hand.

“You will stay here for some hour.” Madam Pomfrey’s face didn’t allow complains. “You have lost a lot of blood and now you need some sleep.”

“Why can’t I rest in my room?”

“Mr. Malfoy, you can hardly stand on your feet now,” the nurse explained, trying to be patient with his stubborn patient. “And I have to look your hand in a few hours.”

She sighed and turned towards the other boy. “You can go now, Mr. Potter,” she told him with a conclusive tone and went to look the other students.

Potter was still there not moving away, he looked indecisive but then he sat down on the stool next to the bed.

“What happened? You are usually good at Potions,” Potter admitted, resting his elbow on his knees and putting his head in his hand.

“And you are usually a disaster, Potter,” Draco countered, resting his back on the headboard. “Maybe you stole my talent.”

Potter laughed amused. “I’m having a little help.”

“Little?” Draco asked with a raised eyebrow. “You were in the top five of the Potions disasters. Why are you even taking this class?”

_And why are we still talking?!_

“I need to pass the N.E.W.T. in Potions if I want to become an Auror.”

Of course, the Chosen One -who fights basilisk at breakfast and dark wizards at dinner- wants to become an Auror. Draco felt jealous that Potter thought about his future when he didn’t even know in which position he will be in the next months. Before the Dark Lord, he was sure to take his father’s place at the Ministry, even if he didn’t like the idea so much.

Draco wanted to tell Potter that it didn’t matter what he studied. Nothing will help him against the Dark Lord. Nobody will ask them how many N.E.W.T. they had succeeded before being killed by the Avada Kedavra, but for which side they stood up. And Draco’s side did never match with that of Potter.

He had enough of the Gryffindor today.

“Just leave now, Potter. I need to rest.”

Potter sighed and stood up. He had again this indecisive look, but then he smiled and waved a hand.

“See you later, Malfoy.”

Draco was left alone and quite confused in his bed. He touched his cheek and he felt it burn. Did he have a fever? He laid on the bed and closed his heavy eyes, feeling suddenly exhausted. He could still feel Potter’s scent on his clothes and inhale it.

He was screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! :) Sorry for the late update but I had a busy week :/  
> If you liked the chapter please let me know :)


	7. Chapter 7

Later Draco went in the Great Hall for dinner, on orders of Madam Pomfrey. The Matron had scolded him for his skinny figure and had ordered him to eat something if he didn’t want to stay in the bed for more days.

Draco had obeyed, not wanting to test anymore the nurse’s patience. He had fixed his clothes and ran out of the hospital wings.

As every year the Great Hall was decorated with Christmas trees, fake snow, and strategically positioned mistletoes. Draco had memorized all their positions to avoid them like the plague.

The hall was full of students and Draco was already annoyed with the loud chatter. They were noisier than usual, even the Slytherin table was perky. Christmas wasn’t a healthy holiday for Hogwarts.

His group was sitting all together near the staff table. Draco saw out of the corner of his eye Snape giving his bandaged hand a strange look. Draco ignored him and took his place beside Crabbe and Goyle. The two boys kept always a seat for him when he came late. Pansy was sitting close to Blaise and Theo on the other side of him with a book on his lap. He looked a little upset at the girl’s enthusiastic talking. This was why existed libraries.

“So, who will you bring to the party?”

Blaise sighed, maybe not for the first time since dinner began, and looked towards him. “Look who has come to visit,” he greeted him with a smirk.

Pansy looked offended for being ignored.

“You look like a ray of sunshine,” Blaise continued, the little snake was trying to change the topic. “How is your hand?”

“Speak for yourself,” Draco answered with a scowl. “It's fine. What party are you talking about?” he asked, just to spite him.

Blaise gave him a death glare.

“But Slughorn’s party!” answered Pansy enthusiast. “You know, Zabini was invited together with other students, they can bring another person with them and he still hadn’t decided who to ask.”

 _Oh right,_ the stupid Christmas party for only the “elite” students. It was like people could only talk about this in the last days. But Blaise didn’t look delighted by it, serves him right. He hid his face behind a cup and Draco grinned, biting a potato chip.

Pansy wanted to be this person and was probably torturing him for hours. Blaise would likely ask her to come with him if he wasn’t so prideful. He didn’t like to do what people expected from him.

“Maybe I don’t want to go.”

Pansy made a shocked face. “But you must! There will be a lot of famous people!”

“Like Potter?” Blaise suggested, annoyed.

Draco looked up at the Gryffindor table where Potter was strangely alone. Well not really, Weasel was there too, but his attention was more focused on a blond-haired girl. Potter was gazing at his plate when he suddenly raised his head towards him. Draco glanced away quickly but the Potter had already seen him and smirked. Draco glared and moved in front of Blaise and Pansy so that he could not see him anymore.

It wasn’t hiding but a strategical action.

Trying to play it cool, Draco took too harshly his cup and winced. His cup fell on the table and Theo quickly cleaned it with one wave of his wand, without moving his eyes from the book.

Madam Pomfrey had told him to be careful with his hand and to not stress it. He was lucky he could still do simple spells.

“Oh Draco, your hand must hurt badly,” said Pansy with worry, leaning on the table towards him. “I came to visit but you were sleeping and Madam Pomfrey kicked me out.”

“Wise woman,” muttered Blaise.

Pansy pretended she didn’t hear him and continued to make a fuss over his injury, but Draco wasn't really in the mood to bear her ramblings. It was strange, only a few years ago Draco himself would have been the one to make a big deal of it.

“Pansy, give him break,” Theo said, perhaps having pity of him or because he wanted to read his book in peace.

“I’m just worried about him, someone should tell him,” Pansy said with an intransigent look.

Draco stopped to eat and gave her a warning look.

“What? Do you think I'm so stupid to not notice how have you been?”

Some Slytherin started to look at them as Pansy raised voice.

“Did you look in a mirror lately? You should because you don’t seem yourself Draco! You look like a ghost and it's like you aren’t really here the few times you are with us!”

Draco’s eyes became sharper with every word but Pansy didn’t notice.

“Maybe you should talk about it in the common room,” Blaise suggested but Pansy kept moving forward like a train.

“You don’t talk to me anymore and you don’t care for anything. Prefect duties, your studies, and Quidditch! You love Quidditch! And-”

“That’s enough, Pansy.” Blaise placed a hand on her arm and the girl stopped, feeling suddenly out of breath. She looked at Draco and trembled. Draco’s face was sharp and cold. Beside him, Crabbe and Goyle stopped to eat and Theo closed his book.

Pansy’s words had snapped something inside Draco that made him livid.

“You know nothing!” Draco said harsh and Pansy jumped in her seat. “I don't know what you are thinking in your little stupid head of yours,” he hissed, not moving his gaze from her. “You are not my mother or my confidant and I don’t owe you nothing!”

Pansy looked smaller in her place but Draco didn’t stop.

“Next time remember your place and keep your muzzle shut, Parkinson.”

Pansy bit her trembling lower lip and her eyes became wet with tears. Draco closed his mouth and felt numb.

Pansy had never cried for him, not even when Draco stopped to date her. She had always been by his side and seeing what he did to here made him feel low. He had thrown all his frustration to her. Draco didn’t want to be mean to Pansy, she was one of his closest friends and even if she was overwhelming sometimes she didn’t deserve it, not from him.

“Is the show over now?” Blaise said stoic but his dark eyes betrayed his composure.

Pansy was trying to contain herself and Theo gave him an apprehensive look. The other two giant Slytherins weren’t sure if they could continue to eat. Draco looked around and saw the other housemates watching them astounded. The Ravenclaw seated near to them were giving them strange looks. Professor Snape stood up and Draco knew he was going to talk with them, especially with him.

It was rare to see the Slytherins argue in public. Usually when they had problems they would discuss them in the common room or privately somewhere else. But now they did put on a show and he had to do his grand finale.

Draco shielded his mind and turned around, walking out of the Great Hall with his head height and gaze fixed on the door, avoiding everyone’s stare. Once he was out and the door closed behind him, Draco dropped his shoulder and went to the stairs, but not for the dungeons.

He didn’t want to talk with Snape and neither with his housemates. Maybe he should apologize to Pansy later, but was he even able to say sorry? His father would probably scold him for even thinking about it. He had always told Malfoys never apologize. Lucius hadn’t even said sorry to the Magical Community fifteen years ago, blaming the Imperious Curse for his action. And look where this had led his family. He locked in Azkaban, his wife surrounded by crazy Death Eaters and his son forced to pay for his actions.

Draco reached the seventh floor and entered the Room of Hidden Things. It should feel like home by now but Draco started to hate this place. It was cold and messy. He couldn’t understand why the students had left their things there. The elegant Vanishing Cabinet stood out with all the crap.

Draco opened the cabinet and cursed. The book he had sent yesterday hadn’t still come back.

He just wanted this thing to work and everything back to normal. But, who was he kidding? Even if he would make it nothing will be the same with the headmaster’s death.

Draco decided to go back to his room, he wasn’t tired since he had spent all the afternoon in the bed, but he didn’t want to stay there all the evening. Suddenly Draco felt strange, something wasn’t right. He could smell something he hadn’t felt in months. Draco touched his neck and swallowed.

_No, no, no!_

He had taken his potion this morning, so, how was it possible that he could smell his Omega scent? This was a disaster! The moment he will set foot out of there and someone saw him they will know he was an Omega. He could not get out now, he needed to wait for the curfew and the end of the prefects’ patrol so that nobody could catch him. By that time his housemates will be all asleep and nobody will notice anything.

Draco took his wand and tried to do some spell to fill the time. It hurt a little with his injured hand but it wasn’t difficult. The potions that Madam Pomfrey had given him helped.

_Of course, the potions!_

Somehow the healing potions must have interacted with the suppressant. Damn Snape for not warning him! He was lucky that it didn’t happen in the Great Hall. He could already hear the shocked gasps and laughter of the students.

The time passed and Draco felt the anxiety rise in him, but he needed to calm down, nobody should be at this time out there.

Draco sneaked out of the door and sighed in relief, indeed nobody in sight. It was very dark, he wouldn’t be able to see anything if it wasn’t for the moonlight.

Draco walked slowly without making any noise and stayed near the wall. It was going well but then he heard a rattle. His heartbeat increased and Draco turned around, spotting an old armor on the floor.

"Who is there?!" echoed a voice.

It was Ernie Macmillan.

Draco jumped and stuck on the wall behind a pillar, hearing the Hufflepuff approach him.

What was the Prefect doing up there?! Shouldn’t he be in the basement?! He and Macmillan had never been friendly, well, more like Draco had never been nice to the Hufflepuff even though he was a Pure-blood. Being a Hufflepuff had ranked him by default in the bad list.

The moment the boy will discover him he will be screwed! By tomorrow morning all the Hufflepuff house will know his secret, they will share it with the rest of the school, the rumors will reach the Ministry and in the end the Dark Lord. Draco didn’t want to think what will happen from there.

Maybe he could obliviate the Hufflepuff but what if he didn’t manage it with his hand injured? He will be in more trouble.

“Come on! Come out and maybe I will not punish you heavily.”

Draco rolled his eyes. What a pompous git! He wasn’t even able to threat someone properly. Maybe he will leave him if he stayed hidden.

The light of his wand was coming nearer.

“As you wish, on the count of three I will uncover you myself!”

Ok, never mind, the Hufflepuff was a sadist. And people said their house was the nicest one, they actually knew nothing.

“One.”

Draco looked left and right to find a solution but he couldn’t move without being spotted. He searched for his wand in his robe.

“Two.”

His body started to feel covered in cold sweat. He will try everything to stop Macmillan, nobody will discover his secret!

“Three. Lumos Maxima!”

Draco felt something in front of him before the sudden light blinded him. A solid body shielded him from Macmillan’s sight, trapping him on the wall, and two hands on his shoulders prevented him from moving. A familiar scent cocooned him like a warm embrace.

“Shh,” whispered a voice.

Draco opened slowly his eyes and froze on the spot. Two bright green eyes were drowning in his grey ones. Harry Potter’s invisible cloak was protecting them from Macmillan. Draco felt the wind knocked out of him.

He didn’t know how things could get worse than that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well now things will get more complicated for Draco and Harry ;)


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Thank you all for the feedback in the last chapter and to Seana who edited this one.  
> Enjoy the read!

“Strange,” said the Prefect, looking at the discarded armor on the floor.

“Do you talk to yourself these days?”

A girl with long blond hair approached him. Her Prefect crest was shining in the moonlight. “What are you still doing here?” Hanna Abbot asked curiously, tilting her head.

Macmillan grimaced and scratched his head.

“I was sure there was someone here, someone who made the armor fall.”

“Maybe it was Peeves?”

“Do poltergeist have a magic scent?”

“Oh,” Abbot gasped, looking around startled. “You think it was Harry Potter?” she then whispered, with a hand covering her mouth.

“No,” Macmillan said, sure of himself. “It wasn’t an Alpha scent but an Omega.”

“Really? There is an Omega at Hogwarts?!”

“The good question is,” Macmillan wondered, putting the armor back in its place. “Why is he hiding?”

“Maybe we can talk about it on our way back?” Abbot suggested, stroking an eye. “It’s late and I feel tired.”

Macmillan nodded.

“One thing is sure, the Omega is in our year or in the seventh year and. . .”

Draco breathed a little easier the moment he couldn’t hear the two Hufflepuffs anymore. He hadn’t really paid attention to their talk since it had been really difficult with Potter only a few inches away from him.

Potter hadn’t moved at all during the conversation, his gaze still locked on Draco. He didn’t remember Potter being as tall as him. His face had become more defined and more manly. Even though it was winter, his skin still looked like it was kissed by the sun. He had changed a lot in this last year. His eyes had seen more than one death but they were still vibrant and now full of consciousness. He wasn’t the little kid that Draco had met at Madam Malkin anymore.

The Gryffindor’s proximity was making Draco feel dizzy, he needed space to breathe.

“Shit,” Potter panted, breaking the ice. “You really are an Omega?”

Potter’s obvious statement woke Draco from his slumber.

“How clever you are, Potter,” Draco said irritated. His body was pressed against the wall behind him, trying not to touch the other’s body.

“And now get away from me!”

Potter took a step back, leaving his shoulders, and then stared at Draco with amusement.

“Maybe if you will let go of my t-shirt.”

Only now did Draco notice that his hands had a tight grip on the edge of Potter’s clothes. He blushed and pushed Potter away, making him stumble backward.

“Hey!” Potter shouted upset, falling to the ground.

Draco raised his wand and pointed it at Potter’s face. “That’s the thanks I get?” Potter asked, offended, his jaw tightening up. “We both know that you can’t cast an Obliviate if you don’t want to end like Lockhart.”

Draco’s face changed from angry to confused.

“What does Lockhart have to do with this?” Draco asked, his grip on his wand softened. “You were indeed involved?”

“Not much,” Potter said, avoiding answering his question. “Listen, the point is that you can’t use complex charms against me right now.” He stood up and pushed Draco’s wand away from his face.

Draco grimaced and shook with rage. Why was Potter always one step ahead of him?

“So, what do you want?” he asked with fake bravado.

He didn’t feel safe right now. Hell, he wasn’t the one with the upper hand here. Potter would surely want something from him. His father had taught him since he was a child that everybody wanted something in exchange for a favor.

“Why do you think I want something?” Potter responded instead, shifting from one foot to another. “I just wanted to help you. . .”

Draco wasn’t convinced, he even felt more humiliated. “What? Now that you know I’m an Omega you just want to play the knight in shining armor?”

“No!” Potter shouted, raising his hands in the air in a gesture of peace. “Listen, it was because of me that Ernie almost saw you.”

Draco frowned.

“What do you mean?”

“I made the armor fall. I was walking and I. . . bumped into the thing.”

Draco wanted to choke Harry Potter with both his hands and he didn’t care if he injured him or was sent to Azkaban. Maybe he would be safer there.

“You idiot! Because of your clumsiness, I was almost caught!”

“I think you are overreaching, Malfoy,” Potter said with a scowl. “Why are you hiding your status?”

“That’s not your business, Potter.”

“I would be nicer to someone who knows my secrets.”

“That’s not true, hypocrite.”

“Can’t we just have a civil conversation, Malfoy?” Potter looked very tired now.

Draco glanced away from him and crossed his arms. “You wouldn’t understand, Potter.”

“Why? Some stupid Pure-blood thing?”

“It’s not stupid.”

Draco would call the Dark Lord a lot of things but not stupid.

“I think we are actually in the same boat, Malfoy.”

Draco looked astonished at him but Potter continued to talk. “Nobody can understand what we are feeling right now, maybe we can help each other?” Potter blushed at his own words and shook his head. “I don’t mean in that way! Just you know, as acquaintances?”

“You want to open a new club, Potter?” Draco scowled. “I don’t have time for your stupid acquaintance project and if I had I would never join you. Now leave me alone.”

Draco turned around but Potter grabbed his right wrist. What a stubborn mule!

“What?” Draco asked, edgy.

He felt his skin pinch and Potter left him like he got burned.

“Someone could still see you, Malfoy,” Potter said, scanning the floor.

“Well, only if some idiot is there to make me get caught. By the way, why were you following me?”

“I wasn’t following you!” It didn’t sound very convincing but Potter proceeded. “I was taking a walk.”

“In the middle of the night?”

“It like the silence.”

“Right.” Draco barely hid his sarcasm.

“It’s true.”

“And you were just casually walking on this floor.”

“What about you? From the dungeons to up here, what are you up to?”

In this moment his stomach decided to rumble and Draco blushed a deep pink. He was glad for the dark, this was getting embarrassing. He had eaten almost nothing in the Great Hall. Madam Pomfrey wouldn’t be happy about it.

Potter smiled and Draco wanted to punch his perfect white teeth.

“I was looking for the kitchen,” Draco lied like a good Slytherin.

“Hungry, eh?”

“Shut up, Potter!”

“I know where the kitchen is.”

“You just want to poison me.”

“I’m not you,” said Potter with a grin. Like the idea of Draco trying to poison him was funny. “Let's go.” Potter took his invisibility cloak and gestured for Draco to join him under it.

“Why are you doing this?”

Draco wasn’t able to understand Potter anymore.

“I told you, I want to make it right after the previous incident.”

“It wasn’t an incident,” Draco corrected him.

“Whatever, just come here, Malfoy. Nobody will see you under the cloak.”

Draco evaluated his options. Risking being caught again or being near Potter? It was so difficult. But being under an invisible cloak sounded amazing.

“Malfoy, we don’t have all night.”

Draco grimaced and decided to go for the cloak.

“Ok, but stay in line!”

“Like I want to touch you!” said Potter affronted and made space for him.

Draco elbowed him and Potter reciprocated.

“Can we move now?”

“Lead the way, oh Chosen One.”

Potter sighed exasperated and walked towards the stairs with Draco beside him.

Draco thought it was very helpful to have such a cloak right now. He could have sneaked wherever he wanted. Potter must’ve accomplished a lot of things thanks to this cloak in the past. Was this what being a Gryffindor was like? Going hunting for adventure with magical artifacts?

“So, how many things did you get up to with this cloak?” Draco questioned him instead with a smirk.

As expected Potter stumbled and blurted out, “I just use it for useful things.”

“Of course, Saint Potter, that’s why you were sneaking in my compartment last time.”

Potter was going to answer but a meow stopped their track. Mrs. Norris passed before them, looking in their direction with her yellow eyes. Draco was sure she had spotted them but the cat turned the corner and left them alone.

“Ghoulish cat,” Draco grunted.

“We better shut up now,” Potter replied in relief.

During the walk, now and then, the two pushed each other every time they felt the other one too near to them.

Draco almost thought they were going to the dungeons because of how many stairs they had climbed but then they ended up in a corridor decorated with a painting of food. Potter stopped in front of a portrait of a bowl of fruit and started to tickle the pear.

“So, it’s true, you really are mental,” Draco said without humor.

“Malfoy, shut up and look.”

A door appeared and Potter entered, giving Draco a victorious look. Draco stood there indecisive but then followed his insides. The Hogwarts kitchen was a really big room. The House-elves were busy cleaning pans, pots, and dishes.

A House-elf came to them and greeted Potter like they were friends for life.

“Harry Potter! Dobby is so happy! What can Dobby do for sir?”

Draco recognized him, he had been one of their house-elves, the one that Potter had freed, tricking his father. It was his mother who told him the true story. His father would never tell him how a twelve year old had played him like a fool.

This elf was different from the other ones, he was wearing strangely colored muggle clothes and even socks.

“Draco Malfoy,” the elf said with fear as soon as he saw him. He looked scared at first but then he raised his chin fierily. “Dobby is a free elf now, Draco Malfoy can’t do anything to him!”

“Dobby,” Potter called him with a gentle tone, “it’s ok he is not here to punish you. Malfoy is with me.”

Dobby glanced at him strangely but from his defensive posture, he didn’t seem sure of Potter’s words. Potter looked at him with expectation and Draco’s brow rose at that.

What, now he wanted him to reassure a House-elf? Potter had bumped his head very hard with the armor. Draco remembered little of his time with the elf, for him they were all the same. Maybe he had been a little mean, but who wasn’t at that young age? House-elves were just servants, obeying the wizards and witches was their life’s purpose. Suddenly the thought made Draco feel sick. _Am I just like a house-elf?_

Draco looked back at Dobby, the elf was barely able to contain his shaking under his gaze.

Empathy was a quality Draco never possessed. He had always been an egotistical child and this didn’t change growing up. His sympathy for the creature was probably dictated by just projecting himself in him.

Potter made some guttural sound and Draco glanced at him with a questioning face.

“You had a strange look, you alright?”

Draco didn’t answer him. He was going to do something stupid right now, something he will regret, he knows it, but for once he wanted to do something instinctive. _Oh, Salazar!_  he sounded like a Gryffindor.

“Dobby.”

The elf almost jumped around the table.

“I wanted to tell you-” Draco felt his throat dry and his tongue tied. Saying the words seemed more difficult than eating a sour lemon.

Both Potter and the elf were giving him funny looks.

“I wanted to-” _Come on Malfoy it’s not difficult! Just do it!_ “apologize if I have ever treated you bad in the past.”

He did it! Even if it was a little fast and difficult to catch, he was able to say sorry to a house-elf. His father would probably disinherit him if he knew about it but, Draco felt a little stupid about it, his heart was feeling a lot lighter.

Dobby was looking at him with big round teary eyes.

Ok, something went wrong.

Draco turned his head towards Potter and his heart leaped.

Potter was genuinely smiling at him. His smile was something that Draco never saw and couldn’t ever have imagined.

“Old bad Master Draco Malfoy saying sorry to Dobby,” the elf said with awe like he still couldn’t believe it. “Dobby is so happy!” he cried and wiped his nose.

“Master Draco Malfoy?” a dry voice croaked.

A very old house-elf had appeared from behind a table. He was looking at Draco fascinated.

“My old Mistress’ great-nephew?”

“Kreacher, I didn’t call you,” Potter told him hastily, which was strange since he had freed Dobby.

Wasn’t he the friend of the elves? Or was it Granger?

“Master told me to work in the kitchens.”

Potter seemed to not have a good answer, so the elf turned back to him.

“Oh, Draco Malfoy has the same beauty of my old Mistress,” Kreacher flattered him to Potter’s annoyance.

Draco grinned smugly.

“Kreacher, instead of declaring your love, can you bring us something to eat.”

“Oh no wait,” Draco said, leaning on the table. “I like it when someone praises my handsomeness.”

The Gryffindor shook his head, making his glasses almost fall from his face, and Draco laughed. And he said Draco was the one who overreacted.

“What does the noblest Master Malfoy wish?”

“And Harry Potter too,” Dobby added, looking badly at Kreacher.

Both he and Potter decided to eat something sweet. Draco took the apple pie and Potter opted for treacle tart. Apparently, it was his favorite food but for Draco it was too sweet. He was very satisfied with his choice.

Done eating the two left the kitchen, telling Dobby and Kreacher they would come back. They had made them promise to not tell anybody of this encounter and about Draco’s secret.

Once outside the kitchens, Potter took his cloak and waited for Draco to join him.

“I think I can go alone, Potter.”

“Are you really still on that?”

“You are really stupid if you think I would show you where the Slytherin common room is.”

Potter grinned cheekily, holding his hands behind his head.

“What if I tell you I already know where the dorms are?”

_No way._

“Just the Dungeons is not the answer, Potter.”

Everybody knows their common room is somewhere underground.

“It’s hidden behind a stone wall,” Potter revealed satisfied. “And if you want I can bring you there if you don’t believe me.”

“You are insufferable, Potter.”

“You are not better.”

Potter did indeed know where his dorm was and Draco really hated him. Well not really, actually he was impressed and curious. Why did he know where it was?

“Well that’s it,” Potter said, shifting the cloak.

Draco felt a little cold, somehow he had gotten used to Potter’s warm presence beside him.

“I will leave you here so that I don’t hear the secret word.”

“What if you stay hidden under your fancy cloak and you hear it?” Draco asked warily.

“Malfoy, I’m not plotting something against your creepy common room.”

“Our common room is not creepy, it’s quite classic.”

“Exactly.”

“I’m sure yours looks like the Owlery.”

“I will not tell you what our common room looks like,” Potter said with a smirk and Draco grinned back.

“I bet ours is still better.”

“You wish.”

Draco liked this kind of banter, it was funny, his heart was pounding with excitement and not with wrath or hate like in the past. And something told him for Potter it was so too.

“I better go now,” Potter said.

He sounded a little reluctant but maybe it was just Draco’s imagination.

“Have a nice walk, Potter.”

The Gryffindor waved his hand, ignoring his teasing, and turned his back. He took a few steps uncertainly but then he determinedly looked back at Draco.

“I won’t tell anybody about it, Malfoy.”

Draco stared at him dumbly and Harry chuckled, starting to walk away again.

“Potter!” Draco called him.

The Gryffindor stopped and turned only his head to him.

“I still don't like you.”

Harry narrowed his eyes but then smiled.

Draco thought he was starting to get poisoned by his smiles.

“The same goes for me.”

Potter put on the cloak and disappeared.

With his lips turned upwards Draco entered the empty common room. Without making any noise he reached his room. Despite the charms, Crabble and Goyle’s snores could still be heard from within the curtains.

Draco chuckled and sneaked into his bed, closing his deep green curtains. That night he didn’t have nightmares, he dreamed of being in an empty Quidditch pitch together with a dark-haired seeker and a golden snitch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> +Chapter was edited


	9. Chapter 9

Harry woke up feeling great, despite the fact that he hadn’t come back early the other night. Luckily, nobody had noticed his absence, Hermione had been avoiding Ron completely while Ron had been too busy with Lavender to notice.

Harry still couldn’t believe what had happened yesterday. The day had started with the usual Potions lesson. He had almost finished his work when he heard an explosion coming from Malfoy’s seat. Harry and the rest of the class had been quite shocked, Malfoy had never failed a potion. But really, lately everything about Malfoy didn’t quite make sense.

After Slughorn had freed him for the rest of the lesson, Harry had decided to follow Malfoy to the hospital wing. He had not really thought about what he had been doing and Malfoy’s grumpiness had made him almost regret having followed him. That was before the Slytherin had almost fainted. He had been so busy arguing, he hadn’t noticed Malfoy getting paler with every passing second. Harry would never admit it but he had been afraid for Malfoy, he had looked too sick and there had been too much blood on the floor.

He had carried Malfoy to the hospital wing and the boy hadn’t spoken a word. Harry had felt a heavy weight on his heart. Seeing Malfoy so vulnerable hadn’t felt right. Thankfully Madam Pomfrey had put him back in shape and Malfoy had been back to his usual self. He had been heartened to see him better.

_Stupid Malfoy for making him worry._

Later that evening Harry had decided to search for the Slytherin on the Marauder’s Map. He had felt amused at seeing Malfoy search for him. It wasn’t true that he had no time for him anymore. But then the blond had argued with Parkinson and left the hall, without eating at all. Harry could say a lot of things against the snakes but they had never antagonized each other in public. He hadn’t been able to hear the discussion but he had known something wasn’t right from the Slytherins’ dark faces after Malfoy had left. For god’s sake, even Snape had reached their table probably asking for clarification.

Harry had almost lost hope of finding Malfoy’s name on the map when he saw his steps move on the seventh floor. Harry had taken his cloak and quickly went after him. He had been so focused on the map that he didn’t see the armor in front of him. The crash had drawn Ernie Macmillan’s attention towards them and he would surely have found Malfoy if Harry hadn’t acted. He had instinctively run towards Malfoy, who was badly hidden behind a column, and covered them with his cloak.

It had been then that Harry had smelled it, an Omega scent, and there was only one person who could have been the source of it. Discovering Malfoy was an Omega hadn’t been quite a shock, at least Malfoy’s strange behavior around him made sense now. Since Harry was an Alpha Draco had been preoccupied that Harry could somehow find out his secret.

The strange thing was that Harry had felt in bliss being near the Omega, he had never felt so peaceful since _forever_. But then the bubble had burst and reality had hit him. _It was still Malfoy!_ He should only hate him not feel. . . whatever it was. Malfoy had always been cruel to his friends and him, being an Omega shouldn’t change things right? Except it did change Malfoy somehow, the Slytherin of months ago would have never apologized to an elf, not even for a joke. Harry had felt proud of him and wanted to know more about Malfoy now.

Harry stood up from the bed with a jump and stretched his arms. Ron was sitting on edge of the bed and gave him a curious look.

“Mate, why so cheerful this morning?”

“Why not?”

“Harry, you are a lot of things but a morning person? Not so much. . .”

Luckily a very awake Seamus Finnigan came into the room, saving Harry from having an awkward conversation.

“Harry!” Seamus said cheerfully. “You should go to the Great Hall, quickly.”

“Why?” Ron asked confused.

“It’s not for me to say,” Seamus said with a wink.

_Oh, right._

Harry had been fooling himself in thinking that Ernie and Hanna would have kept their mouth shut.

“See you at breakfast!” And then, just as quickly, Seamus left.

“Well we should move,” Ron said with a laugh. “I’m very curious, aren’t you, mate?”

“Yeah,” Harry imitated him, hoping he sounded convincing. “I’m very curious too. . .”

Harry wished he hadn’t set foot in the Great Hall at all, he should have known better. The Prefects had not wasted time, by breakfast all Hogwarts will know about the “mysterious Omega”.

Ernie stood before him with a huge grin, interrupting his breakfast.

“I’m sorry, Harry it wasn’t my intention to spread the word,” the Hufflepuff said, giving a scolding look towards his house-mates.

“It’s ok, Ernie,” Harry said, trying to not sound peeved.

He was accustomed to the students talk after all these years.

“So what will you do?”

Ernie had told them what had happened last night. A very romanticized tale in Harry’s opinion since he was there.

Harry had to stop himself from looking at the Slytherin table. Somehow his eyes wanted to drift to Malfoy but too many people were looking at him and a wrong move would put the Omega in the eye of the storm. He would not go back on his word. He felt like Draco was his business, no one had anything to do with this but him, not even Ron and Hermione.

“Thank you, Ernie, I will think about it,” Harry said politely.

The boy didn’t look satisfied. What? Did he want a badge of honor?

“You are not doing anything about it?”

“I can’t go to the podium and ask him to come out,” he said sardonically. “It’s not my business.” Harry stopped looking right into Ernie’s eyes. “And not even yours.”

The Prefects’ cheeks became red -Harry didn’t know if it was because of embarrassment or from frustration - and he just nodded. “You are right, Harry. I’m sorry, have a good breakfast,” Ernie barked and went back to his table.

The students turned back to their meal like nothing had happened and the chatter started again.

“Harry, what was that?” Ron whispered, looking at him with round blue eyes. “You should try to find out who is it, he could be your Omega!”

If he knew the Omega was Malfoy he would bitterly regret his words.

“I don’t want to be with someone who isn’t interested, Ron.” And Harry didn’t want to be with Malfoy either.

“Maybe he is just scared,” Ron said casually. He was going to say something else but then Lavender sat beside him, starting to snuggle with him.

 _Malfoy scared?_ It wasn’t something that Harry had thought about. Yes, he had seen the fear in Malfoy’s eyes last night but he didn’t give it much thought. Why was being discovered a disaster for him? What would the consequences have been? His father was in Azkaban and would stay there for the rest of his life. Draco was now the heir of the house, nothing could threaten his position. Was it because of how people would see him? It would make sense but Harry felt there was more to the story. What he saw in Malfoy’s silver eyes was more than simple fear last night. He had looked like an animal corned by a hunter, ready to fight until the end.

Harry cut his bread casually.

Malfoy himself said he was busy, but with what, where did he spend his time? He doubted it had something to do with his Omega status. And what about Borgin and Burkes? Why had he gone there? But the most important question was, did he have the Dark Mark?

Harry’s fists closed around the bread and crumbled it into little pieces.

Was it stupid to hope he didn’t have it? He was an idiot, only months ago he was trying to convince Ron and Hermione he had it.

Every time he got close to an answer, it slipped away. Maybe he should ask Malfoy directly. . .Yeah, as if Malfoy would tell him. He would end up throw all the progress he had made with him out the window. Malfoy would become defensive and wouldn’t talk to him anymore. He didn’t want to go back to the awful quarrels. Something had changed last night, some kind of trust had born between them but it was a fragile bridge, Harry could feel that a wrong step could lead them to the fall. He needed to wait.

“Harry!” Ron’s voice felt like a wakeup call. “We are going,” he informed him with an amused look. “What has the poor piece of bread done to you?”

Harry dropped his gaze on the table, his place was covered with breadcrumbs.

 

* * *

 

Draco was sitting alone with Crabbe and Goyle. Pansy was chatting with some Ravenclaw, Theo had disappeared and Blaise was sitting with other Slytherins. Draco had tried to talk with Pansy but the girl had been avoiding him all morning. Maybe it was better this way, he didn’t really know how to make amends with her.

“Hey, do you want to know the news?” Pansy said out loud, reaching the other sixth year Slytherin girls. From his place, Draco could hear her but Pansy didn’t give him even a glance.

“Just talk, Pansy,” Daphne Greengrass said a little distracted.

The girl was ogling a piece of chocolate cake, undecided about if she should eat it or not.

“Padma Patil told me that Ernie Macmillan spotted an Omega last night!”

Draco almost sputtered his tea but nobody noticed it.

“And who cares?” Blaise asked with a bored look.

Daphne, curious, lifted her gaze from the cake. “Really? Who is it?”

“I don’t know,” Pansy said, sitting beside her.

Daphne aimed for the piece of cake but her hand found nothing. She looked around to find Millicent licking her fingers with a sly look on her face.

“Millie!”

“Too late, darling.”

“They spotted him last night in some corridor,” Pansy interrupted them. “But they didn’t discover him.”

“What? How?”

“He escaped somehow,” Pansy said with a show-off movement. “But they are Hufflepuff what do you expect from them.”

Draco wanted to disappear and not listen to them anymore. How could he have been so stupid? Of course, it had been Potter’s fault but he had acted too carelessly. What if the idiot didn’t have the Invisibility Cloak? Draco repressed a tremor.

Suddenly the chatter in the Great Hall diminished and everybody was looking at the Gryffindor table. Potter was talking with Macmillan. Draco held back a breath. What if Potter changed his mind and told him everything? Luckily the conversation didn’t last long and the Hufflepuff went back to his table with a sullen face.

Ok, Potter had not betrayed him but Draco wanted to know what the two had talked about.

Now people around him were talking about the “mysterious Omega” and were making theories about who was is. Thank Merlin Crabbe and Goyle didn’t like to gossip.

Draco had always liked to be the center of the attention. As a Malfoy, he had been taught that they were the most influential wizards of the society. They were part of the Sacred Twenty- Eight. Their blood was the purest and everybody had to kneel at their feet. Before going to Hogwarts his father had told him two things, to make himself known and to befriend Harry Potter. Somehow the two things didn’t go well together. Draco wasn’t as famous as Harry Potter and didn’t manage to befriend him. And now, after five years, in a way he had not expected, Draco was in the spotlight -even if in anonymity- and Harry Potter knew his biggest secret. Draco hated this, the situation was getting out of his control.

After Charms, taking advantage of the crowded hallway, Draco passed beside Potter and gave him a push with his shoulder.

“Watch your feet!” He told him with a sneer.

Potter frowned at him, “ _you_ watch your way, Malfoy.”

Keeping an exasperated sigh, Draco indicated him with his eyes to the floor and walked away. He looking over his shoulder and saw the Gryffindor kneel on the floor. He hoped the idiot would get the message.

Draco waited for Potter in an abandoned bathroom and after some minutes the door opened. When the Gryffindor entered the door he closed it with a wave of his wand.

“Potter!” Draco stood up angry and Potter took a step back.

“Hey! I should be the one angry! You didn’t need to push me!”

Draco crossed his arms and gave him an annoyed look.

“It was to not get the wrong attention.”

“Maybe a message next time by owl?” Potter asked, rolling his eyes.

“Too complicated and it worked, didn’t it?” Draco grinned smugly and the other boy sighed.

“So what do you want?”

“Everybody only talks about him!”

“About who?”

“Me, Potter! The Omega!” Draco said exasperated, gesturing the hands towards himself.

“You are such a drama queen.”

“A what?”

“Doesn’t matter. What can I do about it?” Potter questioned him, leaning on a sink.

He looked relaxed and Draco couldn’t feel any hostility towards him. The Slytherin scowled and pushed a strand of blond hair from his face. In the last months his hair had gotten a little longer.

“What did Macmillan tell you?”

Potter’s expression became neutral and he shrugged his shoulders casually. “Just the breaking news.”

“And?”

“And asked me some things.”

“Things?”

“Yeah, things. . .”

Draco started to lose his patience at his vague answers. Potter was playing with him.

“What did he asked you?”

“Why should I tell you?”

“Potter, come on!” He shouted finally.

Potter started to laugh and Draco pouted, offended.The Gryffindor laughed louder, he even had tears in his eyes.

“You should see your face, Malfoy.”

Draco’s eyes fall on the mirror beside him and the pout on his face disappeared. Pansy had been right, despite the fact that he had slept well the previous night, he looked horrible. His eyes had a tired look, his features had become too thin and his skin greyish.

His eyes were sad but the emotion quickly disappeared when he met Potter’s green gaze. The only thing the Gryffindor could see now was an inscrutable wall of ice.

Draco turned back to him, giving him a cold glance. Potter had stopped laughing long ago.

“So did he asked something important or not?”

“Not really,” Potter answered without any more humor. “He just wanted to know what I would do now.”

“I see.” Draco wanted to know that as well. Understanding Potter was simple and difficult at the same time. “And what will you do?”

“I won’t do nothing,” Potter said with a meaningful look.

The answer took Draco by surprise and what he said next even more.

“At least I thought _you_ didn’t expect anything from me, Malfoy.”

Draco stared at Potter intrigued.

“What do you mean?”

“Everybody always expects things from me,” the Gryffindor confessed bitterly. “To act in a certain way, to be ready for what is coming,” he paused, touching his scar. “To be the Chosen One.”

Potter looked at him with an intense gaze and Draco felt the kneazle in his stomach scratching again.

“But when I’m with-” Potter stopped and shook his head, chuckling humorlessly. “Whatever, how is your hand?”

“It’s- better,” Draco answered confused at the sudden change of topic. “It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

“We should go to lunch.” Potter stood up from the sink and moved to the door but this time it was Draco who stopped him.

“Why are you in a hurry now?”

“Because is lunch time and I’m hungry?”

“Don’t sass me, Potter.”

“I thought you didn’t want,” Potter gesticulated with his finger between them, “to be near me.”

Draco noticed the little space between them and stepped backward.

“Well, that’s because we are Potter and Malfoy, we hate each other.”

Not even Draco sounded certain of his words.

“Yes, but what about Draco and Harry?”

It was the first time that Draco heard Potter say his name. He liked how it sounded.

“I think I need a few hours to think about it.”

Potter looked satisfied at his answer. “Then I will wait for you after dinner, in the kitchens,” he said, blatant. “If you don’t come I’ll get the message,” he added then, sounding a little off, and left without any more words.

Draco stared at the closed door for a while and went out after a few minutes, as a precaution.

He didn’t pay much attention to the rest of the lessons and pondered what he should do. He knew this _acquaintance_ should stop. He could not serve the Dark Lord and then go drink tea with Potter. He could not risk his mother’ life and his own.But when he was with Potter he felt. . . alive. Even if he tried to act cold with him in some way the Gryffindor was able to melt him.

Draco felt they were entering into something bigger than them but he wasn’t able to stop it, the pull towards the alpha was too strong. But he should be the more scrupulous person and move away.He couldn’t afford to follow his instincts. Yes, Draco had decided, ignoring any other protest in his head.

Later that evening the Slytherin went to the Room of Hidden Things, he was walking up to the stairs but then he stopped his track. There were two stairs, one for the basement and one for other floors, two choices. Draco bit his lips, he wasn’t able to stop himself, he changed the route and rushed to the basement.

Out of breath he opened the door for the Kitchens and found Potter still sitting there, in the same place as yesterday. The Gryffindor raised his head relieved and smiled.

“Good to see your ugly face, Malfoy.”

“Good to see you too, Scarhead.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> +Chapter was edited


	10. Chapter 10

Draco and Harry were hiding in a little alcove that it had probably been an old broom cupboard in the past. Harry knew a lot of secret rooms and passages not even Draco had knowledge of. And Draco was a Prefect, or perhaps had been, well it didn’t matter.

They both had decided to not abuse the Kitchens as a meeting place to avoid being seen by other students. It would be difficult to explain why the two archenemies passed their time together. They acted like usually in public, or so they liked to think.

The two wizards had spent a lot of time together in the last month, even though it had been a little awkward at the beginning. What would two former rivals have in common? Playing seeker for their teams was the only things they had in common. But one thing led to another and they managed to break the ice between them. Somehow Malfoy had changed to Draco and Potter to Harry, but unlike the other boy Draco had kept this to himself.

Usually the two met during their free times or in the evening. Draco didn’t have any problems with his housemates since they were already used to his disappearances, he didn’t know what Harry told his friends and he didn’t care. The only problem was that he had neglected his task since he had started too spent more time with Harry.

Now they both had a free period, the Slytherin was finishing an old essay for Transfiguration and the Gryffindor was reading his Advanced Potions Making book.

Draco peeked at the other boy curiously. He had never seen Harry so interested in a subject apart from DADA. Harry had never liked Potions and he had never been above average.

 _Something is not right with this book,_ Draco thought and stole the text from Harry’s hands. The cover was new but the pages were all written in a confusing handwriting.

“Hey,” Harry complained. “Give it back!”

Draco pretended to not hear him and flipped through the scribbled pages full of personal notes. Draco was sure this wasn’t Harry’s doing, the handwriting wasn’t new to him and some advise weren’t either. This was the secret of Potter’s new talent.

“You little cheater. . . Who gave you this?”

“Nobody,” Harry answered but it was clear there was something off. “I bought it, second hand.”

Draco raised his light eyebrow and made him a -who are you kidding- face. “You are not a Weasley, Potter.”

Harry gave him a death-stare, daring him to say more but Draco ignored him.

“You want to deny it? You never had a second-hand book,” Draco observed objectively, still going through the pages. Maybe Draco had observed Harry too much for being so sure of it. “And this wouldn’t even be sold in a thrift store. . . now that I think about it.”

Harry tried to take back the book but Draco slipped away from him with a graceful move.

“You didn’t have the potions book the first lessons and you took it from the classes old stocks so you-” Draco continued, pointing a long finger against Harry, “didn’t return it.”

“I did!” Harry said outraged but then he added a little awkward, “I just didn’t give this one back?”

Draco grinned. “Oh, but I’m not shaming you, actually, I’m so proud of you. This is worthy of Slytherin,” he concluded, looking the back of the cover.

“I’m not a Slytherin!” Harry argued but Draco ignored him.

Taking advantage of his distraction Harry tried again to grab the book but Draco stretched his arm out of his reach.

“Possessive, aren’t we?”

Suddenly Draco found himself sprawled on his back with his head hurting a little. Harry had pushed him on the floor and now he was laying on him with a victorious grin. The book had fallen from his hand with a thud on the floor.

“That was rough, Potter!”

“You practically forced me!”

They hadn’t been so close to each other since the night Harry had discovered Draco. They had made a silent deal to not cross the invisible line they had traced between them.

Feeling the Alpha’s warm scent so close made Draco want to just drown into it.

“I like your scent.”

Draco wanted to slap himself. Why was his brain disconnected from his mouth? This happens when you start to hang out with brainless Gryffindor. Blaise would have mocked him for this.

“I mean, I like the smell of your shampoo, what is it? Cluster pine? Or-”

Harry tilted his head and smiled. “You are babbling, Draco.”

“No, I’m not!” Draco replied like a child and Harry laughed.

“I bet that your pout would become legendary if it isn’t already,” he said with a flippant tone.

Draco stood up on his elbow and glared at the other wizard even more, if possible. “Not as popular as your ugly scar, Potter!”

Harry frowned and pushed Draco’s shoulder back on the ground. “Stop it.”

Draco growled and tried to throw Harry off but the boy wasn’t as light as he looked and didn’t move an inch. Harry's eyes were dark; the green was barely visible with his dilated pupils.

“Get off, Potter!”

“Only if you will stop it!”

“Stop what?!”

“Calling me Potter.”

This was stupid, Draco had thought he would say something else, like _“stop being an asshole”._ Well, this was a stupid request too.

“That’s it?”

“Yes?” Harry answered confused and Draco wanted to hit his head on the ground.

“Ok, now move, _Potter_.”

“You just said Potter again!”

“Really? It must be like a tic, I can’t control it,” Draco said, blinking his eyes melodramatic and judging Harry’s face he didn’t fall for it not even a bit.

“It’s just a name with five letters, Draco. Like yours.”

“The same can be said for our surnames too, six letters, P.O.T.T.E.R.”

Harry shook his head but he didn’t give up and got even closer to him. “H.A.R.R.Y. See? It’s easy, now repeat.”

Whatever remark Draco had, it had died long ago. Draco wondered if Harry was totally clueless or just pretending to be. Because how could he consider the little distance between them appropriate?

As if he could read his mind Harry climbed away from him, quick as a rabbit, and made Draco’s ink splatter on the floor.

“Shit!” Harry cursed, using a cleaning charm before his pants would be ruined.

“Serves you right,” Draco chided him, sitting up again and fixing his school robe.

“That’s because you didn’t give me back what is mine!” Harry accused him, putting the ink back in his bottle.

Draco turned around and took the book from the floor, he had completely forgotten about it. “This book is the property of the half-blood prince,” he read aloud with a thoughtful look.

He had some idea of whom the book could belong to but it didn’t make sense, did it? If his theory was right it would be a funny paradox.

“You have any idea who is it?” Harry asked him and Draco wanted to know since when did Potter know what was on his mind without casting Legilimens.

“No,” Draco lied and gave Harry back his book. “Here, take back your precious prince.”

Harry gave him a careful look, accidentally stroking his fingers. “No blackmailing?” Harry asked him and Draco felt almost offended.

“I don’t need help from an old book and who am I to stop your path to the dark side?”

Harry sighed and mumbled “it’s just a potions book” and started to pack his things.

“But maybe you can lend it to me sometimes,” Draco added and Harry chuckled.

“Maybe,” Harry said and stood up from the floor. “I will go first, I want to skip some crowned hallways.”

“Why?” Draco asked, still packing his things. “Too famous for these grounds?”

Harry glanced at Draco annoyed but didn’t take the bait. “It’s more like: avoiding mistletoes and eager witches.”

Draco raised an eyebrow and wrinkled his nose. “You are telling me that girls still go after you, knowing you’re an Alpha?”

“Hermione told me that they think I have an alluring aura now.”

“That’s bullshit!” Draco exclaimed, standing up. Only Omega and fellow Alphas could feel this kind of things. “They can only smell your scent.”

“Uh, right,” Harry agreed, giving him a curious look. “But they probably just want to be invited to Slughorn’s party tonight.”

“Stupid party,” Draco muttered to himself. “And you’re going?” he asked, trying to sound neutral.

Harry nodded to Draco’s displeasure. Not because he wanted to see the Alpha tonight since it was the last day before the holidays but because all this party business was starting to get annoying.

“You’re going with the mud- I mean Granger?” Draco corrected himself when Harry’s green eyes narrowed in a warning look.

They had already had this argument about the names Draco used for his friends and he didn’t want to start a new one. Some habits were just hard to break.

“No, she goes with McLaggen.”

 _What?_ Draco laughed, leaning his shoulder against the wall.

“Is she trying to get Weasley jealous? Good luck with that since he is denser than you.”

“What do you mean?” Harry asked, crossing his arms.

“Oh nothing,” Draco answered, evasive. “So, will you go alone?”

Potter shrugged his shoulder casually. “Maybe I will ask Ginny.”

Draco stiffened, his brow furrowed as his mouth turned grim. Ginny Weasley. Of course, he’d go with her.

“Then enjoy yourself, Potter,” he said coldly and walked quickly past him and towards the door. Harry opened his mouth to say something but the Slytherin closed the door behind him with a snap.

Draco marched through the hallway with long steps and hoped that the other boy would be late for his next lesson in trying to avoid the horny teenagers. The image of Harry kissing somebody else irked Draco terribly. He shouldn’t be so angry, he and Harry were not bonded and the Alpha could do whatever he liked. Harr-Potter wasn’t his _mate_ and Draco didn’t want him to be. _Really? Who are we kidding?_ The inner voice in his head asked in a mocking way. _You aren’t neglecting your mission and risking everything just to see his pretty face._

“Shut up!” Draco said out aloud and a group of first or second years’ bystanders looked at him as if he was crazy. Draco glared at them with a sneer and the kids disappeared from his sight. Good, at least his trademark glare still worked.

Draco stayed in a bad mood all the day, he avoided all the public places so he wouldn’t run into Potter. Not that the Gryffindor tried to talk to him since, after Transfiguration he followed Granger.

The only one who had the courage to approach him was Theo later that evening. Draco was lying on his bed after the stressful day when the boy entered their dormitory. He was alone since Crabbe and Goyle were in detention.

“Draco,” Theo greeted him, assessing him carefully.

“What?” Draco snapped, giving him a bothered look.

Theo didn’t seem affected by Draco’s temper. “Professor Snape wanted to see you, _again_.”

Snape had been trying to talk to him in private for weeks trying to find out about his task, but Draco didn’t want to talk to him about it.

He had diligently avoided the Professor since he already had a big stock of his suppressants potions. Draco had visited the professor a few days after the incident in the hallway and had asked for clarification about the suppressants’ interaction with the other potions. After he had gotten his answers he had fled away from Snape with an excuse.

“And he sent you as his owl?”

“You don’t have to be surly with me,” Theo said, not taking offense from Draco’s rudeness. “What happened? You were starting to look better lately.”

Theo had always been the most observant of them all, despite being a loner.

Draco closed his eyes, tired. “Look, I don’t want to talk about it,” he said frankly because there was no reason to lie to Theo, he always knew if someone wasn’t telling the truth. “I will talk to Snape.” _But not today._

“Just be careful, Draco,” Theo warned him, his voice sounding odd to Draco’s ears.

“Careful about what?” Draco questioned him but he got no reply. Well, appear and disappear without making any sound was one of Theo’s ability. At least the latter didn’t give him a heart attack like the first one.

Draco stood up from the bed, feeling a little better, and went to the common room. The Slytherins were passing their last evening together. Some students were playing chess or Exploding Snap and other were just chatting before the fireplace. Blaise and Pansy were there too, sitting on the couches with Daphne and the others. They were already dressed for Slughorn’s party. It was a mystery if Blaise had asked her out or if she had just invited herself. Draco hadn’t still tried to talk with Pansy and Blaise had become distant with him lately.

Only a year ago Draco would have been sitting in his favorite armchair and having fun too. All the Slytherin would have been eating out of his hand. But now that his family had lost power, both in the Ministry and in the Death Eater circle, nobody cared for the Malfoy heir anymore.

Draco felt angry again and stormed out of the common room. He ran up the staircase alone, cursing the castle for having so many stairs, and reached the Room of Hidden Things out of breath.

“ _Harmonia Nectere Passus_ ,” Draco muttered for the umpteenth time in front of the Vanishing Cabinet and opened it. It was useless, the bird he had sent along ago was lost. Draco closed the cabinet and laid his forehead against the door. He needed to be concentrated and his mind wasn’t focused right now.

At this point, Har- _Potter_ was surely at the party a few floors below with the Weasley girl. They were probably laughing about something that only stupid Gryffindor would find funny and Weasley would then cling on Potter’s arm. Was the Gryffindor infatuated with her despite being an Alpha? There weren’t cases of Alpha and Omegas bonding with normal witches or wizards but Potter had always been a special case. _What if he..._ Draco shook his head. He needed to stop thinking about Harry in that way, they were just acquaintances, not even friends. He wasn’t attracted to him! He didn’t like his _stupid green emeralds eyes_ and his _goofy smile_ plastered on his _ugly perfect face_. Draco would end up tearing his hair out if he continued to avoid the elephant in the room in this way.

It was time to call it a night, so he sneaked out of the room. Pity he didn’t see Flinch around the corner waiting for him with his stupid cat.

Draco had never felt so humiliated in all his life; the disgusting squib had dragged him to the party like he was scum. And seeing Harry at the party had not made him feel better, the boy had tried to make eye contact with him but Draco had avoided his gaze meticulously. Things hadn’t gotten better when Snape had decided to have a talk with him. At least he hadn’t seen Pansy and Blaise.

Now he was following the Professor in silence through the Hallway, that’s before the older man dragged him roughly in an abandoned classroom and stood before the door to prevent him from getting away.

“What are you doing? I’m not a rag doll!”

“I should ask you this, what the hell are you doing, Draco?”

Draco snorted at the question.

“What? Didn’t you hear earlier?”

“Don’t try to fool me, boy,” Snape said slowly but with authority. “Getting caught like a little child, injured only a few weeks ago, and almost being discovered when you were vulnerable. What is going on in your mind?”

“That’s not your business.”

Snape's eyes hardened.

“Well, maybe it’s _Potter’s_ then? You seem close lately.”

“What?” Draco breathed shocked, he didn’t understand why this came argument came out now. “There is nothing between us,” he then contradicted him fervently. “I only have my mission on my mind.”

“Is that so?” Snape asked far from convinced and tried to get in his head but Draco had locked his thoughts beforehand.

Snape didn’t look impressed. “You can fool those who surrender you and _yourself_ but you can’t escape your _master_.”

Draco took a step back; his eyes were clear with fear now. “You promised you wouldn’t tell him anything.”

“I don’t need too,” Snape assured him. “He will just know with time.”

Draco felt his hands shake and he closed them in fits.

“You think I didn’t notice the _subtle_ shared glances,” Snape continued slowly, in a clear sign of disapproval, “him sitting beside you during my lessons? That’s quite pathetic.”

“You didn’t seem to complain that time,” Draco pointed out and Snape gave him an irritated glance for it. If Draco was someone else, he would already have had a detention.

“I had thought you would have put him in his place but I. . . was wrong.”

“I told you there is nothing between me and Potter!” Draco shouted out, he didn’t know if he was trying to convince Snape or himself.

Snape gave him a pitying look and Draco pushed past him for the door.

“Don’t do something stupid, Draco.”

Draco started to hate people giving him advice. “I don’t need your advice,” he said spiteful and rushed out.

He marched through the hallways with a furious face, the Hogwarts students were lucky to be in their common rooms because he would have surely cursed someone in that moment.

Suddenly Draco’s feet halted unwillingly and he would have fallen with his face on the ground if it hadn’t been for his reflexes.

Draco tried to raise a foot but it was like it had been glued to the ground.

“What the heck now!” Draco yelled and something moved on the ceiling. Draco slowly raised his head and he cursed the Hogwarts founders, even Slytherin. There was a mistletoe on his head and not just a normal one but the one produced by the Weasley twins. Draco had heard that this kind of mistletoe will free you from his magic only when someone kissed you.

Draco pointed the wand against the mistletoe. “Incedio!” he cast, he would not submit to a damn plant.

When the fire burned out the mistletoe looked just fine, perhaps even healthier. Draco cast every single destructive spell he knew but nothing seemed to bother the magical mistletoe.

This was becoming one of his worst day of his life after taking the Dark Mark and waking up as an Omega.

When would fate stop to punish him for his faults?

“Crucio!” Draco screamed desperately and then knelt exhausted. His eyes were teary with rage. What a stupid way to use an unforgivable, well better this way than curse someone else.

He had to wait for some teacher to free him because he will not kiss some passing bastard.

“Did you just use a Cruciatus Curse against a poor mistletoe?” a familiar voice asked and Draco put a hand over his eyes.

What was Harry doing here? Shouldn’t he be at the party with the ginger-haired girl?

“Shut up, Potter. That thing is anything but innocent.”

“This is a matter of opinion,” Harry said amused, kneeling before him. Draco didn’t need to see him, he could clearly feel his presence near him.

“Do you know how to get free?” he asked worn. “That’s a Weasley twins’ garbage, you should know how to escape it.”

“I don’t know, that’s why I try to avoid them.” Harry sounded truly sorry and Draco rolled his eyes.

“My usual luck.”

“It could have been worse.” Harry took the hand from his face and Draco glanced at him doubtfully. “Someone else could have found you.”

Draco couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly. “But thank you! I’m always so lucky to be found by The Boy Who Lived,” he said with sarcasm, the poisoned words were just running out of his mouth without thinking. “But look, the courageous Gryffindor can’t help me right now! So how does it feel to be useless, Potter? Maybe it’s not a new emotion for you after last year. You should go back to your Weasel girl now!”

Immediately Draco regretted his words but it was too late, Harry’s face darkened and he left his hand.

“I will call Zabini and Parkinson,” Harry barked, standing up. The vehemence in his tone froze Draco on the ground, he could feel the Alpha’s wrath and sorrow under his skin.

“They can surely help you.”

 _No!_ Draco didn’t want Harry to walk away from him. Couldn’t he just for once do the right thing where Harry was concerned? At least he should be honest with himself, he needed to swallow his pride. His father would escape from Azkaban if he knew how Draco was leading the Malfoy name.

“Wait.” It was barely a whisper, Harry heard him but he did not stop.

Years had passed but Harry’s indifference towards him still hurt like the first-time. It was like the air had just gotten punched out of his lungs.

“Hold- hold on a second.” His voice was louder now but Harry continued to act like he didn’t hear him. Draco pushed his hands on the ground and stood up a little wobbly. He took a long breath and then. . . “Harry! Please don’t go!”

Harry finally did stop like he had been hit by thunder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Sorry but I'm more busy lately, so updates will not be so often as before.  
> Let me know if you liked this one please :)  
> Ps: The first chapters are being slowly edited, I will add "+Chapter was edited" (how original of me XD) to let you know.


	11. Chapter 11

Draco felt worn out, it was like he had run all around the castle. The hallway’s lights had blown out for a moment.

Harry turned slowly towards Draco wide-eyed, he was breathing heavily too as if gasping for air. “What was that? I felt like. . .” he stopped, holding a hand to his chest. “What did you do?”

Draco looked confused; did he really just hit Harry with accidental magic? It was absurd; Draco had mastered total control of his magic years ago. He had just wanted Harry to come back, not to harm him.

“Just tell me!” Harry said with a demanding look.

“I don’t know!” Draco shouted, trying to move but he couldn’t because of that _damn_ mistletoe. “But I didn’t want to hurt you!”

Harry’s feature softened at Draco’s words. “You didn’t hurt me,” he reassured him, starting to walk back to him. “It doesn’t make sense but...” Harry took a deep breath trying to find the right words. “I could feel your emotions and pain, there was so much fear.”

Draco’s shoulders became tense. He was feeling on the verge of a nervous breakdown and wasn’t this ridiculous? Malfoys never lost control of themselves, never let weakness show. He had thought that thanks to his Occlumency Harry would never feel his emotions like Draco had felt his. But something had happened before, somehow Draco had created a channel between them and now Harry couldn’t take his eyes off him. And wasn’t this what Draco had wanted? Having Harry’s attention all to himself? But he didn’t want it to happen like this. He now felt naked in front of the green penetrating gaze and he didn’t want Harry to see him for what he had become.

“Draco, talk to me, I want to understand-“

“Stop it!” Draco interrupted him. He couldn’t handle any more words from Harry. “You don’t know what you are talking about!”

“You’re right.” The Gryffindor moved forward and closed the last gap between them. “And this makes me feel mad because I sense what you are feeling and I can’t do anything to make it go away!”

Draco needed to close this channel.

“No, don’t do it!” Harry grabbed his arms, sensing Draco’s thoughts. “Don’t hide from me, Draco!”

But Draco couldn’t not do it, there were too many things that Harry didn’t know, things he couldn’t know. _I’m sorry,_ he thought and tried to cut the link.

Harry's hand tightened on his arms. “Why are casting me out?”

Draco lowered his gaze, he couldn’t bear Harry’s imploring eyes. His green globes were always so honest in a way that Draco could never be with him.

“You are doing this again, every time I think I have a grasp on you, you slip away from me.”

“Magic can mess things up, Harry,” Draco told him, trying to have control of his voice again. “I’m Omega and you are Alpha, what you are feeling is not real.”

“Are you really telling me now that this is all fake?!” Harry said angrily. How Filtch had not heard them was still a mystery. “So, that’s it? You are just the pathetic coward that I had known for the past few years.”

“You never knew me!”

“Then let me, like you did before!” Harry’s right hand cupped Draco’s cheek to meet his gaze. “You can’t tell me that what I saw is all an illusion, Draco.”

Draco didn’t move away from the touch; Harry’s hand was warm against his cold skin.

“I’m not a Seer, Harry, I don’t know what you are seeing.”

“I see you!” Harry exclaimed. “Not just a Malfoy, a Slytherin or-“

“an Omega?!” Draco interrupted him, moving his head away frustrated. “Don’t lie to yourself, Harry! That is the only reason why you’re still here with me!”

“Maybe it was true at the beginning when I was still confused about everything,” Harry said with a lower voice, moving his hand away, “but now I don’t fucking care. I feel good when I’m with you.”

Draco shook his head. “You will end up disappointed.”

“Maybe but I’m not scared.” Harry leaned his forehead against Draco’s and then closed his eyes. “Just don’t tell me that I’m imagining all this, Draco.”

Draco should tell him to back off, for his mother safety, his own and for Harry’s too now. He had the possibility to put a definitively end to all this, it was the right thing to do but. . . how could he do it? His attraction for Harry had become stronger with every passing day that he had spent with him. Snape was right, he had been fooling himself for far too long. He could not renounce Harry, not when he was now so close to him. Harry was real and Draco didn’t have any energy to fake anything anymore.

“If you are imagining all this,” Draco said, stroking Harry’s neck gently, “then you are not alone.”

Harry opened his eyes and smiled, putting a hand on Draco’s neck as well. “Then I think I can help with the big bad mistletoe.”

Draco grinned back. “Now don’t get full of yourself.”

They closed the small gap and their lips finally met. The kiss was sweet but intense. Harry’s lips were full and chapped compared to Draco’s thin but soft one. Draco put his arms around Harry’s neck, pulling him more towards him.

He could feel Harry’s magic intertwine with his and their hearts beat at the same time as if they were a single entity.

Harry put a hand on Draco’s lower back and as the kiss deepened.

It was natural and even if the kiss wasn’t perfect with Harry’s glasses bumping his face, for them it was amazing.

Right now, nothing mattered for Draco. The task, Lord Voldemort, his father, they all seemed non-existent. Being with Harry made the darkness of his thoughts fade away.

The mistletoe giggled and disappeared together with the grip it had on his prisoner. Draco distracted, lost his balance and almost fell to the floor, saved only by the grip he had on Harry.

“I will write a complaint to the Weasley twins,” Draco said with a sneer as he slipped his arms away from Harry’s neck.

“I can’t really complain about the results,” Harry whispered with a grin, caressing Draco’s high cheekbones with his thumb. It was like he could not stop to touch Draco now.

Suddenly they heard whispers of students coming from Slughorn’s party and Harry took his invisibility cloak out of his pocket. He resized it and covered them.

“You are always prepared, aren’t you?” Draco jested.

“You are starting to love it,” Harry answered amused, taking Draco’s hand and dragging him to the wall. They were hiding like they had weeks ago, but this time Harry was leaning on the wall and Draco was in front of him.

The voices of the students were clear now and Draco turned his head, curious. There were three students, a tall dark-skinned Gryffindor of their year, the strange Ravenclaw that was in the Department of Mysteries with Harry and Ginny Weasley.

Draco had forgotten that Harry had gone to the party with the witch before he found Draco under the mistletoe.

“. . . but he shouldn’t have done it!” Weasley was telling the Ravenclaw in a furious tone, though the Ravenclaw seemed unfazed.

“It’s ok Ginny, don’t be so angry.”

“But Harry should have warned you, Luna.”

“Something must have happened if Harry didn’t return,” the platinum-haired girl said with a light dreamy voice. “Maybe some nargles in the mistletoe.”

“Or maybe he really went to the bathroom,” the boy added, sounding more reasonable compared to the other girl, but further from the truth.

The Gryffindor put an arm around Weasley’s shoulder in a reassuring intimate way but it didn’t calm the ginger, quite the opposite.

“But he shouldn’t have disappeared like that! It was an asshole move to leave Luna alone!”

Draco glanced at Harry with eyes full of questions. The Gryffindor ran a hand through his hairs awkwardly. He looked very ashamed of their talking.

“But I’m happy that you are walking with me.”

“That’s not the point he. . .”

The little group’s voices became distant as they turned the corner and both the boys couldn’t hear them anymore.

Draco crossed his arm but didn’t move away from Harry. “Explain, why didn’t you go to the party with she-weasel as you told me?”

Harry sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. “Well, I didn’t say I would have gone with Ginny and don’t insult her, it’ not her fault.”

Draco raised an eyebrow, far from convinced, so the Gryffindor continued. “I wasn’t supposed to go to the party with her?”

“Then why did you lie?”

“I just wanted to see how you reacted. . .”

Well, Draco had reacted with a bang, Harry had played him like a kid.

“Wait, you planned this?”

“Not really, after you left I didn’t know how to go forward and I asked Luna out -but only as a friend- at the last minute.”

“Of course, you are still a Gryffindor. Plans are a foreign concept for you.”

“And you Slytherins are all about plans?”

Draco felt a heavy rock fall on his chest bearing the imprinted guilt. He knew honeymoons don’t last forever, there will be a day where Harry will know about his task to kill Dumbledore and he would go back to hating him. And even if he failed the Gryffindor would never forgive him for having taken the Dark Mark. How could he when Draco was serving the man who had killed his parents?

“Hey don’t be all moody with me again,” Harry joked, but the smile he gave him was uncertain.

“Harry-” Draco started but the other boy shook his head and hugged him.

Draco gasped, nobody had ever hugged him apart from his family and Pansy. Draco wasn’t hug-friendly, but feeling Harry’s arms around him was nice, even though he was starting to squeeze him a little too much.

“ _Potter_ , I’m not your stuffed animal,” Draco mumbled into the others boy coat.

“Stuffed animal?”

“You know, this silly fluffy toys that you hug when you are a child, not that I’ve ever done it.”

“I know what a stuffed animal is Draco, I just never had one. . .”

“What?!” Draco asked taken aback. “Everybody had a stuffed animal! What kind of childhood did you have?”

Harry hid his face against Draco’s neck.

“I’m tired of talking.”

“But-“

“It’s late, let just stay like this, just for a bit,” Harry said almost praying and kissed his neck.

Draco had noticed in the last month how Harry avoided the topic of “family”. He had only told him that he lived with his mother’s muggle relatives and nothing more. But from the dark shadow in Harry’s eyes Draco knew they weren’t on good terms. How many things didn’t Draco know about Harry? And how many had he taken for granted? He felt ashamed for all the awful things he had told him about his parents in the past.

Draco sighed and hugged Harry back, a little awkwardly, leaning his head on his shoulder and breathed his scent in. The night air was colder now, Draco wasn’t wearing his warmest robe but the Gryffindor was like a fireplace, keeping him warm with his body. Harry’s hand lingered on the neck of his robe and shirt and moved them a little back. Feeling the cold air on his collarbone Draco shuddered.

“Harry, we are in the hallway and it’s cold!” he complained but he didn’t pull away as Harry kissed his skin.

“Sorry,” Harry said against his neck, but he didn’t really sound apologetic, “it’s just that even though I can’t smell your magic scent, I can feel it now on your skin.” Harry gave him a last short kiss and moved a little back.

Draco was confused. Snape had assured him that his status would always be hidden when he took the potions but since they’d met at Madam Malkin’s nothing had made sense. But. . . was it so important having answers now?

Draco smirked, touching his neck. “Does it taste good?”

Draco got an answer as Harry’s lips crashed against his, this time the kiss was more intense and lasted longer. His pale hands got lost in Harry’s hair, feeling the softness of his thick black strands instead of the roughness he had always assumed he would feel.

The lights started to turn off but they didn’t stop or care. For now, they could pretend everything was alright and that the morning was far away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> +Chapter was edited  
> And ops late again but I really hope you enjoyed the chapter :)


	12. Chapter 12

A man with a long black robe walked thought the dark hallways with a grim expression on his face. Severus Snape had seen something he had hoped wouldn’t happen, something he didn’t want to see again.

The professor told the gargoyle the password and climbed the stairs to the Headmaster’s office even though his visit wasn’t scheduled.

“Severus,” Albus Dumbledore greeted him surprised. The old wizard was wearing a heavy long robe, ready to leave, and was packing some things in his luggage. “Was there something you forgot to tell me earlier? That’s not like you.”

“My suspicions were right, I saw them. . . together,” Severus said bitterly.

Dumbledore looked contemplative. “Well, it’s about time.”

“That’s it?” Severus asked with narrowed eyes. “You have only this to say?”

“There are two things we can’t stop, Severus,” Dumbledore said, closing his luggage. “Love-” He held up his cursed hand. “And death.”

Severus shook his head and made a bitter sound. “These two brats know nothing about love.”

Dumbledore chuckled and reduced his luggage. “Don’t be so sour, Severus,” he joked, tucking his luggage away. “Love begins with the smallest things.”

“Spare me your _words of wisdom,_ Dumbledore. If Voldemort peeks in Potter’s mind, then saving Draco’s soul will be the last thing on your mind.”

“Voldemort will never do it again, and don’t ask me why, we’re out of time now.”

Dumbledore headed in the fireplace and took a handful of Floo powder from a vase. “You will continue to do your job, Severus, till the end.”

Severus pursed his lips but didn’t respond.

“And I think that Harry can actually help the young Malfoy more than we ever will.”

“From my experience, Potter’s name stands only for trouble.”

Dumbledore shook his head and smiled. “Have a good Christmas, Severus.” The headmaster was swallowed by the green flames and disappeared.

Severus glared at the fireplace, cursing old wizards and teenagers for making his life complicated.

 

* * *

 

Harry slowly opened his eyes and hissed. Why did his back hurt? Harry put on the glasses resting beside him and blinked. Why had he been sleeping on the floor?

Something warm moved beside him and Harry remembered. He glanced fondly at the blond head on the pillow near him. Draco had always been a noisy git so it was strange to see him sleep without making a sound. Harry could barely hear his breathing.

They were resting in one of their arranged alcoves. Harry didn’t really mind since he had been in worse conditions but Draco had complained loudly about _Harry’s_ idea to lie on the floor like peasants. Last night they had both been too tired to try to transfigure something more comfortable than a sleeping mat and a blanket.

The birds were singing and the sunlight was starting to enter from the little windows. It meant they had to go in their rooms if they didn’t want to be seen together. _Together_. . . Harry smiled. Yep, he and Draco were together now, well, they hadn’t really talked about it since they had been too busy with their make-out session.

Harry blushed at the memory.

If someone told him months ago that this would happen, Harry would have escorted them to Saint Mungo’s or to a muggle therapist himself.

But here he was lying beside the Malfoy heir.

Harry took Draco’s right hand and touched his palm delicately as if he was predicting his future.

Draco was sleeping on his side, a little curled in on himself, with his face turned towards Harry. He looked peaceful and soft in his sleep like nothing was troubling him. If only they could stay like that for the rest of the day, maybe in something more comfortable. . . But Harry had promise Ron that he would accompany him to the Burrow for Christmas. It would only be two weeks, he could manage it, right? But he didn’t want to leave Draco, not when he finally had him.

At first Harry hadn’t been sure of what he was doing, becoming friends with Malfoy? Just “science fiction” muggles would have said but Harry was a wizard so everything was possible, right? And in fact, they had been able to put their antagonism aside and just enjoy their time together. But Harry had been very naïve, he had justified his need to pass more time with the Slytherin as mere curiosity towards him and to discover the truth behind his disappearances. But as the days went Harry forgot about the latter and he had instead noticed for example how Draco always bit his lower lip while concentrating on his essays and how little wrinkles would appear in his smooth skin when he was sincerely laughing. Or the way the sunlight hit Draco’s blond strands making it look like pale gold as he tried to explain a chess move, or other things, that made Harry stare at him like he was some incomprehensible and at same time simple work of art.

Sometimes it had been difficult to concentrate on his work with the other boy so close to him, Draco was an omega and Harry didn’t know if it was the magic in his blood messing with him. He had even started to have dreams about Draco in pleasant but embarrassing contexts when the morning sun woke him up, and Harry knew this wasn’t how friendship worked.

But Harry really enjoyed his time with him, Malfoy had become Draco not just in name, he had taken a place in Harry’s heart with his smiles and little gestures that made his heart beat faster and feel all warm inside. And after the initial confusion, Harry had started to realize that he didn’t want to be just an _acquaintance_ when it came to Draco but someone who he could rely on. Because Draco had become something more for Harry, someone who made him feel good and made him forget about the responsibilities that people were throwing on his shoulders since he’d first defeated Voldemort. Draco had always had the capacity to make him forget his surroundings, for better or worse.

Yesterday had been like a roller coaster. Harry had gone to Slughorn’s party but his mind hadn’t been there. He had thought of Draco the whole night and how much of an idiot he had been earlier, he should have known that jealousy didn’t do any good, Ron and Hermione were perfect examples of that.

Harry had tried to find Draco before the party with the map but he had stayed in the dungeons all evening. Harry had almost made peace with the thought of seeing Draco after the holidays when Filch had disrupted the party. The squib had manhandled Draco roughly to Professor Slughorn and Harry had wanted to tear his hands away from him. Even more rage had filled his eyes when Snape had taken Draco out of the room. Harry had gone after them and he had found them talking in an abandoned classroom. He had arrived just in time to hear Snape insult their relationship.

Snape hadn’t spelled it out but Harry had realized that the professor knew about Draco’s status and he felt upset about it. He had thought that only he and Draco shared this secret and that was ridiculous, why should only Harry know about it?

More words were exchanged between Snape and Draco before Draco rushed out of the room, angry. Harry had stood alone for a moment a little disappointed because of Draco’s words but he had understood that he had done it to dispel Snape’s view. It had hurt a little but not as much as Draco’s words under the mistletoe.

It was like they had gone back to months ago, if not worse, or so Harry had thought but then it had happened. The door that Draco always kept locked it had opened and Harry had felt hopeful and powerless because he had not only felt Draco’s purest emotions but also negative one and above all dread.

What Harry feared the most was fear and feeling Draco’s own on his skin had upset him a lot. Draco was dragging something heavy on his shoulders that were making him suffer and Harry wanted to protect him from it.

But how could Harry help if Draco didn’t tell him what was wrong? Harry didn’t know what to do, should he give Draco time to explain himself and continue to play the dumb or press the matter?

“Ow, stop it.”

It had been barely a whisper but Harry almost jumped at the quite voice. He turned his head and met Draco’s sleepy gaze.

“. . .What?”

“Stop squeezing my hand, you idiot.”

 _Oh,_ Harry had grasped Draco’s hand in a tight hold, lost in his thoughts. Harry let go of his hand with a smile and Draco yawned, turning to the other side.

Who would’ve guessed, Draco Malfoy was a sleepyhead.

“Oh, good morning to you too, Draco.”

“It’s morning already?” Draco asked, seeming more awake now.

“Mm yes?”

Draco stood up quickly, startling Harry, and grabbed his robe searching something in his inner pockets. He sighed when he took a little vial out and sat back down.

“Thanks Merlin.”

“What is it?” Harry asked, standing on his elbows.

Draco gave him a long side glance and then shrugged. “Suppressant potion, after last time I always have one with me,” he answered, drinking the potion all in one gulp.

Harry glared at the vial. He wished Draco wouldn’t take it anymore, it was the reason for Draco’s lack of scent.

Draco raised an eyebrow questioningly and Harry realized he had been staring at him.

“Does it taste bad?”

“Not like the anti-heat potion.”

Harry bent his head curiously. “What is it?”

Draco blushed slightly and gave him an incredulous look. “You don’t know?”

“If I knew I wouldn’t have asked.”

“You really are hopeless,” Draco said, shaking his head. “Forget about it.”

“But I want to know now!”

“I’m not explaining it to you!”

“Come on, Draco.” Harry pushed up off of his elbows. He was simple curios about it. “What is wrong with it?”

Draco’s cheek became darker and he crossed his arms. “If you are so curious then go read a book about Omegas or ask Granger, she seems to know everything about this world.”

Well, Hermione had given him a book about Omegas and Alphas biology and magic bonds but Harry had been too lazy to read it all.

“You are being childish, Draco.”

“ _You_ should stop asking stupid questions, Harry.” And with a sneer, Draco turned his face away.

Draco looked more like a scowling little bird with his bed hair then a threatening snake and Harry chuckled, amused.

“What are you laughing about now?”

“Oh, I didn’t know that your silky hair could be messy too.”

Draco looked embarrassed and tried to smooth his hair with his hands. A rebel hair insisted on staying in the wrong place and Harry burst out laughing.

“Shut up!” Draco shouted but Harry continued laughing loudly.

Draco scowled and threw a pillow at Harry’s face, taking him by surprise.

“Now you can’t laugh anymore,” Draco smirked satisfied.

Harry responded by throwing the pillow back and a battle started. Pillows were conjured when one was destroyed and the floor became crowded with feathers.

The battle ended with Harry’s glasses cracked but it had been worth it since Draco had a big smile on his face as he repaired it. Harry was sitting with his legs crossed while Draco stayed on his heels.

“Now you look better,” Draco said as he put the glasses back on Harry’s nose. “You can’t be Harry Potter without your dumb glasses.”

Harry scowled, tried to seem angry but Draco just gave him an amused look, pushing a black strand out of his face tenderly.

Since last night Harry had noticed that Draco liked to touch his hair a lot. It seemed such an unusual gesture from him that Harry started to cherish it, even though he had never liked people touching his locks.

Harry closed his eyes and leaned his face on Draco’s chest. He still felt a little tired and the need to sleep.

“Harry?” Draco called him.

It was nice hearing Draco call him Harry, he made it sound it like it wasn’t simply a name.

“Yeah?” Harry asked, forcing himself to not yawn.

 “. . . We should hurry now, it’s getting late.”

It didn’t sound like what Draco wanted to tell him but he was right. Soon the castle would be full of students saying goodbye to their friends before going back home for the holidays. Harry Ron and Ginny would be gone early, heading off to the Burrow.

Harry raised his head from where it was still resting on Draco’s chest. Draco was looking at the window with a thoughtful expression.

Harry wanted to know what was he thinking about, or who. He wished that Draco just told him everything. They were in this together now, Draco had become _his Omega,_ right? Harry felt stricken by the thought but he needed to hear it and words left his lips without his consent.

“Draco, are you my Omega now, right?”

Draco gaped at him and Harry’s blood ran cold. He knew that this was an antsy topic for Draco, what had he been thinking? He had gone too fast and now Draco would push him away. Harry didn’t know what it meant to be an omega and maybe he should make it a point to do more research on the subject.

The silence became heavy and Harry opened his mouth to say something but Draco surprised him putting a finger over his mouth.

“Only if you are _my_  Alpha,” Draco said heatedly, his grey eyes were sparkling like diamonds now.

A wide smile spread on Harry’s face and he reached out for Draco’s chin. “Always,” Harry said determinedly as he embraced Draco’s waist with one arm.

Draco smiled and brought their lips together. Harry moaned and let himself fall back to the ground tugging Draco on top of him. Kissing Draco was like an electrical shock but more pleasant, the creature in his chest always purred, satisfied now.

 

Leaving the small room had been difficult for Harry but after a shared last kiss Draco had kicked him out before it became seriously late.

Harry entered the Gryffindor common room thinking it would still be deserted but it looked like someone was already awake.

“Oh, hi Hermione.”

_Why her of all the people?_

Hermione was sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace, reading. The curly hair fell away from Hermione’s face as she raised her head from the book, giving Harry a scolding look. It was impressive how much she resembled Molly Weasley.

“Harry! Where have you been?”

“Uh, morning walk. . .”

“Morning walk?” Hermione repeated slowly. “Really Harry? You have the same clothes from the party and Neville told me you weren’t in your bed before he went to the greenhouse.”

The lack of sleep and Hermione’s incessant accusations were giving Harry a headache.

“I couldn’t sleep.”

“And you stayed out all the night?”

“Exactly.”

Hermione seemed ready to say something more but then she gave him an intrigued look. “You look different.”

“More tired?”

“You have a different light in your eyes and you look better overall lately...”

Suddenly Hermione looked like the cat who got the cream and Harry was alarmed.

_Shit! She got it, why does she always get it?_

“You met him, no wait, you were with him!” Hermione said excited, standing up from the couch.

“With who?”

“The Omega student!”

“That’s bullshit!”

“Don’t lie to me, Harry.”

Why was she so good at cornering him with the right words?

“Hermione, please,” Harry said with a sigh. “Don’t ask me more because I can’t tell you, not now.” Not before Draco allowed him.

Hermione stared at him deeply with her intelligent brown eyes. “Is it serious?”

Harry nodded without even thinking. Everything with Draco had always been serious.

Hermione took his hands and gave him a kind smile. “I’m just happy for you, Harry. At least one of us is.”

Harry supposed she didn’t include Ron and his mood lowered a bit. He had taken advantage of his friends’ quarrel. Hermione had thought that when Harry wasn’t with her he was with Ron and vice versa when Harry was always with Draco. He hadn’t exactly lied but wasn’t omission close to it? Harry preferred not to think about it.

They chatted a little bit about the party and when the common room started to fill with people Harry went upstairs to get ready. The rest of the sixth year boys were still asleep and Harry sighed, relieved. He didn’t want to have to explain himself to anyone else.

The morning passed quickly and there wasn’t much time to think yet Harry’s thoughts often went back to Draco. He smiled to Mrs. Weasley as he stepped into the Burrow but his heart was arching badly.

Harry was already missing his omega.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> +Chapter was edited  
> 


	13. Chapter 13

Draco’s feet sunk into the snow as he walked towards Hogsmeade with Theo by his side. Crabbe and Goyle were in front of them, checking out their way.

Draco grimaced, he couldn’t stop to think about how far away Harry was from him, even with this freezing temperature. _For Merlin’ sake_ , it’s only been a day and he already missed him. He was being pathetic, Harry was probably enjoying himself and Draco should do the same. He wasn’t one of those clingy omegas.

Snape had given the permission only to his students to go to Hogsmeade before Christmas and Draco had decided to go too. He wanted to pass a nice time out of that damned castle instead of dwelling over Harry and his other problems.

Yesterday morning Draco hadn’t had the courage to tell Harry everything but he couldn’t continue to play in two fields. He had again complicated his situation and he didn’t know what to do now. Hooking up with the Chosen One, the Dark Lord nemesis. . .  A good way to get yourself killed. Draco was conflicted but he didn’t regret it. He felt lighter now as if the burden on his chest had been moved a little.

The group reached the inner street of the village and Draco shivered. “I really hate this cold,” he mumbled annoyed. He was wearing his warmest cloak and shoes together with the Slytherin scarf and a hat but he still felt the cold freeze his body.

Theo just chuckled. “I really don’t mind.”

“I always wonder what runs in your veins,” Draco wondered with a fake voice.

“Pureblood?” Goyle broke in, looking at them with a grin, and Crabbe elbowed him in the ribs.

“It was iconic, Greg.”

“You mean ironic,” Theo added but the two boys didn’t listen to him since they were too busy at throwing each other snowballs.

Draco rolled his eyes. Really, why did he spent time with these two idiots?

 _Pureblood_. . . Omegas weren’t creatures but not even normal wizards. Was Draco still a Pureblood now? That word didn’t make him feel proud like it used to be before, something that had made him feel safe. During the last summer Draco’s life had changed, his blood status didn’t matter anymore now and he had been forced to understand it in the worst time. This didn’t mean that now _some_ people looked nicer, they will always be obnoxious morons.

“There aren’t many people today,” Theo commented, breaking Draco’s thoughts.

The major street was almost deserted, like at Diagon Alley, some shops had been closed. Only a few shops’ showcases were decorated with bright colors, trying to attract people into buying gifts.

Draco suddenly stopped in his tracks. _Gift._ . . This year he hadn’t had the mind to buy gifts for his housemate, so he had asked his mother to deal with it for him. But should he buy a gift for Harry? Was something that new couples do? He didn’t know if Harry would send him something but Draco decided to buy him a gift anyway, just to be safe. He didn’t want to look like a fool who doesn’t buy a Christmas gift for his mate.

“You go forward, I’ve something to do.”

Theo’s eyes looked puzzled and at the same time annoyed at Draco, surely not wanting to stay alone with the other two. Crabbe and Goyle just exchanged a look, shrugging their shoulders, and started to go to the Three Broomsticks.

“Just be quick,” Theo told him fed up and walked away after them.

Draco entered in every shop but he didn’t find anything satisfying. He wanted to give Harry something special but not too pretentious, he didn’t want the other boy to think that Draco had thought about it too much. Books or school material were too obvious, clothes too personal, quidditch stuff was excluded since Harry had already the best and certainly he didn’t need a perfume.

Well, there was still a shop where Draco had not entered. A crafts and toys shop at end of the street. But what the hell could he find there for the Gryffindor?

Draco entered skeptic in the store and looked around the colorful room.

The walls were painted red with falling silver and gold snowflakes and the shelves were full of stuff. A lot of toys like animated animals, little knights, flying spinning tops moved around the room without control. Draco lowered his head in time before a flying hippogriff toy could hit him in the face. This was not funny.

“Oh, I’m sorry, dear.” A witch with dark and short curly hair came towards him with a sheepish smile. “It escaped from my hands.”

“You should lock up that beast,” Draco said with a frown and the witch chuckled thinking he was just joking. “What can I do for you, dear?” she asked, replacing the toy on his shelf.

Draco’s eyes shifted to the beautiful white dragon plush leaning near the bloody Hippogriff. It was a little bigger than a quaffle and resembled an Antipodean Opaleye.

If he had been a couple of years younger, he would have asked his parent to buy it for him without a second thought. When Draco had been a child, he had been obsessed with dragons after his mother had told him what his name meant. He still had an entire collection of dragon plush, figures, and posters. He smirked remembering his father having almost a mental breakdown when he had cried for weeks to get a real dragon for his birthday. Only his mother had been able to persuade him from it. He missed his parents, yeah, even his father despite everything.

The witch smiled, seeing Draco’s interest, and she handed him the harmless dragon. “This is really a beautiful piece, a gift for a little sibling or a sweetheart?”

Draco’s cheeks became a light pink and the woman’s smile widened.

“I take this for the second one.”

Draco sneered offended. He could not give a plush toy as a present, it was too ridiculous.

“Tickle under his wings.”

Draco raised an eyebrow but he did as the witch said. The dragon flapped his shining wings, coming to live, and started to fly around him. Draco tried to push it away from his face but the plush flew out of his reach, making cartwheels.

Maybe it was not a bad gift for Harry, he had never had a plush toy -which was really depressing- and this one was very annoying, in other words perfect.

“I take it,” Draco said before he changed idea and thought it was too stupid.

The dragon turned back and sat down on his shoulder with a puff.

“Good choice,” the witch approved.

 

Draco went out of the shop with the gift in his pocket and reached the others at the Three Broomsticks. Draco spotted quickly the three boys, they were sitting in a corner and already drinking.

“Very loyal from you to wait for me,” Draco scolded them, taking a seat. It was nice to sit finally down in a warm place.

Crabbe and Goyle looked regretful but Theo just sighed and pushed to him the forth tankards.

“We thought you got lost somewhere,” Theo said casually and sipped his butterbeer.

“ _You_ thought,” Draco corrected him with a smirk for the offered drink.

He took a sip of butterbeer but suddenly a sharp pain in his left wrist made him lose the hold of the tankard who fell on the floor with a loud crack.

Theo said something but Draco couldn’t hear him, his left arm was burning painfully. He had to hold the arm down with his right hand to stop the trembling. The pain spread from his wrist thought his body with growing intensity. His head was pounding and his eyes were filled with tears.

Draco stood up on his shaking legs, ignoring his surroundings, and somehow managed to get to the bathroom. Once the door was closed, he slipped to the floor and held the trembling left arm close to his chest.

Seconds passed and the pain started to subdue in a slow torture until it was gone. Draco took deep breaths and tried to calm down. _It is gone_ , he repeated, again and again, but now tears of sorrow started to drop from his eyes. He raised the sleeve and looked at the intimidating Dark Mark.

It had been just a message; the Dark Lord didn’t want to see him now since the ache had stopped. He had given Draco all his school year to kill Dumbledore but, apparently, he was losing his patience or he was just playing with his mind.

Draco rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands.

Fooling around was not an option, he had to make a new plan since the cabinet wasn’t giving him results. But Draco didn’t think he could finish Dumbledore alone and what about Harry? Everybody knew that Harry was fond of Dumbledore and Draco was going to betray him in the worst way possible, but he had to do this even though it made him feel sick.

Harry could not help him, no matter what he thought. Nobody could save his mother, she was practically trapped in her own house with her sister watching her every move. Bellatrix would torture even her own blood for the Dark Lord.

Draco stood up, still trembling, and went to the sink. His face looked again paler than usual and his lower lip was bleeding. He had bitten it unconsciously lost in the pain. Draco washed away the blood with cold water and his wet clothes with a spell. He had got butterbeer on his clothes earlier and he hadn’t even noticed it.

Draco walked out of the room tired, trying to ignore the voices talking nearby.

“I’m very sorry, Horace, I thought I had another bottle of mead right now.”

“What a shame, this would have been a very good gift for Dumbledore.”

Draco stopped at the name and went back across the hallway. He hid behind a few barrels and peeked carefully, seeing Professor Slughorn talking with Madam Rosmerta near the storeroom.

“Oh, but I can send you one bottle before Christmas with an owl if you want.”

“Really? This would be very kind of you.”

The two chatted a little bit about the meat and then Slughorn left the witch alone.

A bottle of mead for Dumbledore, this was his chance. A new plan started to take form in Draco’s mind, there were a few risks and uncertainties but he had to try it.

Draco hid his wand behind his back and entered in the storeroom where Madam Rosmerta had gone back to get some bottles.

The witch turned around hearing him coming. “Oh, you almost scared me, lad. Do you need something?” she asked, giving Draco a worried glance for his distraught face. Probably she hadn’t been in the lounge when Draco had run away.

Why was she so foolishly nice to him? It would have been simpler if she was less cordial.

Draco tightened his hold on his wand.

Honest green eyes popped into his mind and with them his guilty feelings, but Draco pushed them away. He had to do this, he had no choice, and if his plan worked Harry will never know about his involving. What the eye doesn’t see the heart doesn’t grieve, right?

Gathering his determination, Draco raised quickly his arm and Madam Rosmerta took a step back shocked, but it was too late to defend herself.

Draco had always wondered how was it to feel powerful over someone using that _curse_. When Bellatrix had taught it to him, using it against the lower ranks, he had felt anxious. Now Draco felt a burning sensation in his stomach who was going to eat him alive.

“Imperio.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I wanted to tell you that this chapter was not edited because my beta reader is busy lately and will be for a while. I'm not sure but I think I will continue to update for the next weeks and add the edited chapters later, what do you think? Let me know :)


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, I'm back! Sorry for this long wait but it's been a rough year and the writer block didn't help. I had an idea in my mind and I didn't know how to reach that point but now I know how to go forward but I had to change a bit the first chapter (I'm very sorry, it's only a little change but it is relevant for the plot) 
> 
> Thank you all for your comments, kudos and ect, they really helped me to continue to write this story.

Christmas had finally come but Draco didn’t feel ecstatic like the other years. He had barely slept a few hours and had woken up with an annoying headache.

It was dinner time but strangely Dumbledore’s seat was empty and Slughorn was happily eating and chatting with some other teacher. Even though there weren’t a lot of students the hall was full of noises. If something had happened to Dumbledore people would have already known by now. Draco didn’t know if he felt better for the lack of news or worse. He could barely eat something.

His plan had worked, Madam Rosmerta had communicated that the poisoned mead had been sent to Slughorn. Now it was a matter of time, Dumbledore had only to drink a sip of the mead and his job was done. . . but what if he had noticed the potion? There was really a small possibility he drank it. Maybe he was just waiting to get Draco arrested. Since that morning Draco’s brain continued to suggest him a mental picture of himself on the cover front of the Dayle Prophet, **_“Like father, like son. young Death Eater, Draco Malfoy, attempts to kill Dumbledore_** _”_.

Maybe the Aurors were just waiting for him outside the Hall. _Ok_ , this was improbable, there were no reasons to wait for the end of the Christmas meal to arrest him- _wait_ , maybe they didn’t want to make a fuss and were waiting to get him alone and-

“The headmaster is not in the castle,” Theo said out suddenly.

Draco almost lost his grip on the fork and stared at Theo. “What?” he asked, trying to not look startled without much success.

“I heard McGonagall talk with Slughorn,” Theo said casually, “she told him Dumbledore was on a journey.”

Did Theo suspect something? Draco had been sure that nobody had seen him at the pub. After he had ordered Madam Rosmerta what to do, he had gone back to his table and Theo had been still there with Crabbe and Goyle. The three Slytherin hadn’t asked any questions, they knew better than to ask Draco what had happened.  

“And why are you telling me this?” Draco asked, keeping his voice low.

Luckily Crabbe and Goyle were too busy eating all the food on their table to give them any attention.

Theo didn’t answer at first, he just stared at him with a blank face and Draco had to resist the urge to look away from his friend's gaze.

“The lingering looks you’re giving at his empty seat and the door are too obvious,” Theo said finally.

“That’s not true,” Draco lied, even though he knew that Theo won’t believe a single word. “And you should mind your own business.”

Maybe he had been too nervous and was acting a little too recklessly but Theo was too observant for his own good when he wanted to be.

Draco looked at his pudding and then his housemate. Theo didn’t ask but he could read the lingering question in his eyes.

“Fine, then we should finish eating,” instead said Theo, deadpan, and looked finally away.

 _Good_ , Draco didn’t want to talk about it in the Great Hall, or better, he didn’t want to talk about it at all.

So, Dumbledore wasn’t in the castle and hadn’t still drunk the mead, Draco should be upset that the dotard was still alive but then why did he feel revealed? He needed to get out of here and clear his mind.

Draco ended to eat his dessert and went outside alone. He didn’t want to go back to the common room. That morning he had found only a few gifts unlike the other years, usually he had never been able to count alone all his presents. This Christmas he had only received somethings from his housemates, from his mother and Pansy. Draco was surprised that despite the last rough weeks, Pansy had sent him the same rare cologne she always gave him each year. The note specified that she hadn’t still forgiven him but Draco counted this still as a win.

Harry hadn’t sent him anything, not even a dumb Christmas card, and he felt stupid and angry _~~and a little bit sad.~~ _ You know what, it was better so, he will tell Harry that the gift had been an error or it wasn’t him who sent him. It was stupid anyway.

The fresh air didn't help much, Draco walked slowly, trying to enjoy the white landscape, and reached the shores of the Great lake. He sat down on a stone and looked at the horizon. The sky was grey and it looked like it may snow again. He could hear the laugh of the kids who threw snowballs at each other in the distance like he and Harry had done in the past.

And here he was again, thinking about Harry. He hadn’t had any contact with him since he left the castle and - _Merlin_ \- Draco missed him, every passing day was a slow torture and he just wished Harry was here. With his eyes closed, he could hear Harry whispering his name on his collarbone and feel the tip of his fingers touching lightly his back till they reached his neck and then his teeth touch his skin and- _Stop right there, brain. Where did this come from?_

Draco knew that the bond was fully completed only when the Alpha sealed his Omega’s neck with a bite. But Draco didn’t want the mating bite, not while another one marked his skin.  

Draco brushed unconsciously his left wrist, and memories of the last summer nights came back.

_It was late, Draco had already eaten and now he was in his room, thinking about how to torture Potter next year when suddenly someone knocked at the door._

_“I don’t want to be disturbed!” Draco yelled, laying on his bed._

_The annoyer didn’t listen to him and opened the door._

_“I told to go away!”_

_“Pijjy is really sorry, Master Draco,” said one of theirs house-elf, ignoring Draco’s outburst. “But Masters have guests and Mrs. Malfoy is waiting for Sir in the leaving room.”_

_Draco grimaced. He didn’t understand why his mother wanted him to be there too. She knew he didn’t want to be disturbed after dinner._

_He hoped it weren’t Aurors again. The house had been invaded by them after his father had been arrested. They have even interrogated him and his mother and he had already told them that he didn’t know anything about his father’s business with the Dark Lord. And unfortunately, it was true, Lucius didn’t tell him anything. Draco knew just a few things only because he eavesdropped the conversation between his parents._

_“Who is it? Aurors?”_

_Pijjy shook her head and squeezed her ragged cloth. “No Aurors,” she whispered._

_Draco frowned and stood up from his bed. The house-elf looked too scared to be just random visitors. “Tell my mother I’ll be there in a minute.”_

_He changed into something more fitting for visitors and walked down the stair. As he could hear two female voices whisper he slowed down his pace._

_His mother’s voice was barely recognizable, she sounded nervous while the other voice sounded low and husky._

_“Now Draco, it’s not nice to eavesdrop.”_

_Draco jumped as a woman stepped into the entrance hall. He quickly recognized her. Draco had seen the witch in some old photo album that his mother kept in the attic. A tall woman with black long hair and dark eyes with a mad sparkle in them. She looked so similar to his mother but also so different._

_“Aunt Bellatrix,” he said, startled._

_Bellatrix smiled, or better grinned. “What a fine young boy you have, Cissy,” she said delighted and turned her face towards the doorframe, looking at his sister. “You must be proud of him.”_

_Draco felt pleased for his aunt's words but when he saw his mother the sentiment died down._

_“I am,” Narcissa said sincerely but Draco could see another sentiment in her light eyes._

_“Come and sit with us, Draco,” Bellatrix said, like this was her home, and gave Draco a reassuring pat on the shoulder._

_Draco glanced at his mother with a questioning look but she didn’t say anything. As they walked into the leaving room a bad smell hit him,_ an Alpha’s scent _his brain suggested him. Draco felt the hair  on his neck stand up and he closed his eyes for a moment. The scent was rotten and suffocating, he almost couldn't breathe._

_Draco looked around the room and spotted Rodolphus Lestrange. The Alpha was sitting on Draco’s favorite couch and invading their leaving room with his scent. He looked like an average man with dark hair and an unkempt beard. Unlike his wife’s his eyes showed no emotions._

_Bellatrix sat beside her husband, ignoring him, and Narcissa set on another coach without blinking an eye. Draco felt awkward as he sat on his father’s armchair, wondering if he was the only one who smelled Lestrange’s rottenness so strongly._

_A tray with tea and biscuits appeared between them and Draco felt himself in a surreal situation. He drinking tea with his crazy uncles while his father was in Azkaban._

_“This is Rodolphus.” Bellatrix introduced her husband, bored. “Rodolphus, Draco.”_

_Lestrange just nodded his head and Draco did the same._

_Draco was sure that this wasn’t the way his aunt had been taught to introduce people during her earlier education, but it was clear that Bellatrix didn’t give a damn about formalities, unlike her sister._

_“Now, Draco,” said Bellatrix with a ringing tone. “We are not here for chitchat but to give you an invitation. You must be very honored for it, not everybody has this kind of opportunity.”_

_“An invitation for what?” Draco asked impatiently._

_Narcissa gave Draco a warning look but Bellatrix just continued to smile._

_“But to meet the Dark Lord.”_

_Draco stopped to sip his tea and just stared at his aunt with wide eyes._

_The Dark Lord wanted to meet him? But why? Draco was the son of Lucius Malfoy, the man who had failed the mission at the Ministry._

_“He wants you to take the place of your father, to become one of us, a Death Eater,” Bellatrix continued proudly. “The ceremony will be tomorrow night, I’ll pick you up.”_

_Draco stood there with his tea getting cold. An invitation from the Dark Lord, an invitation that he couldn’t refuse, but then again, did he really wanted to refuse? This was his chance to redeem his father’s mistake and his chance to shine, to stand out._

_“I can’t wait,” Draco said, excited._

_His aunt smiled with great pride while his mother looked horrified._

He had been a fool. . . If only he had known, but it wasn’t like things could have been changed.

A loud crack made Draco jump from his sea. He pulled out his wand, ready to cast a hex, but he stopped when he saw who it was.

“Kreacher? Why are you here?”  

The house-elf bowed, touching the snow with his nose. “Kreacher is here because Master asked him to given Sir Draco Malfoy this,” Kreacher said, raising his arm, and then added quietly, “bloody Master thinks Kreacher is an owl but Kreacher does it gladly for the Mistress’ nephew.”

Only now Draco noticed the packet the house-elf had with him. It was little and wrapped in red paper with a silver ribbon.

Harry hadn’t forgotten about him.

Draco took the offered package and sat back on his rock. He unwrapped the paper and opened the white box, lining on a purple velvet was a feather necklace made of glass. It was simple but quite sophisticated. Draco gasped, he never had something like this and he loved it. He put on the necklace and hid it under his shirt. He didn’t want people to ask him questions about it, it will be another one of his secrets and he will cherish it.

Draco chuckled humourlessly.

The awareness of his situation came back to crush on his shoulders.

His father liked to tell him that a good Slytherin should always know how to work with lies but Draco’s was tired of this. Lie to Dark Lord, lie to his mother, lie to his housemates, lie to Harry. He was suffocating with all those ropes of lies he had fabricated. He had promised to himself he will stop with this when he had decided to be with Harry. He could not lie to his Alpha, he didn’t want to.

Draco clasped the necklace and stood up. The thought horrified him a lot, it was freighting but he had to do it.

He had to tell Harry the truth.

 

 

* * *

 

Harry fell onto the bed and sighed. That had been an exhausting day. Scrimgeour visit had been a surprise, not of the good ones, especially since Harry didn’t have a good mood for days. Being far away from Draco was difficult, he wanted to be with him, to touch his skin and his hair, to look into his eyes and memorize all the different kind of shades.

He didn’t know why but he felt a pull at the back of his mind that told him something wasn’t right, which was stupid because Draco was safe at Hogwarts. He had asked Kreacher to go and see if everything was alright and to give Draco his present. He didn’t want the gift to get in the wrong hands. It was something he had made himself with the help of Bill. Ron's older brother was the only who wouldn’t have asked awkward questions.

In his haste, he had even forgotten to add the note to the gift.

 _Oh,_ now that he remembered, he had to open the last present. The note was only signed with a D but Harry knew from who it was.

Ron was already snoring so this was the right moment to open it. Harry took the gift from under the bed and opened it. He peeked inside the packet and laughed heartily.

He couldn’t think of a better Christmas gift.


	15. Chapter 15

“Draco!”

Draco stiffened when Pansy squeezed him in a hug as he stepped into the common room. “I’ve missed you so much!”

Draco patted Pansy’s shoulder, a bit awkward. “I thought you were still. . . upset with me.”

“I am, doesn’t mean I don’t miss you, also your gift was a good bonus.”

Draco had to thank his mother for this. He sighed and pushed Pansy away from him when she didn’t still move away.

Today everyone had come back to school. The Slytherin common room was full of students chatting about their winter holidays and Draco hadn’t left his bed to get stuck in there.

“I’ve to go.”

“What?” whined Pansy. “But I have a lot of things to tell you, where are you going now?”

“I’ve to go to the library,” Draco said, showing his bag.

Pansy frowned. “The library?” she reaped slowly.

“I’ve to finish an essay.”

Pansy didn’t seem satisfied with his answer and puffed. “Fine, then I’m waiting for you here, don’t lose too much time.”

Draco nodded and rushed out of the common room. He climbed the stairs he knew by heart now and reached the fifth floor. After he made sure nobody was around, he touched a scratch on the wall and entered the secret alcove.

Draco pressed his lips together into a thin line when there was no sign of his mate. They didn’t have much time and Harry was already late. Of course, Mr. It-isn’t-my-fault-if-I’m-always-late had to take his sweet time. Draco leaned against the wall and waited.

After his decision, he had sent an anonymous parchment to Dumbledore warning him about the poisoned bottle. Not one of his best ideas but better safe than sorry. He didn’t want to be responsible for the dotard’s poisoning now that he had decided to talk with Harry. But he didn’t even want the headmaster to know about his mission if he really trusted Snape with his secrets. He couldn’t risk it.

Draco patted a foot nervously on the ground. _I can do this,_ he repeated to himself, fidgeting with the cuff of his robe. The door opened and Draco stilled against the wall. He raised his eyes and met Harry’s gaze. They stood there for a moment before Harry closed the door behind.

“You are late,” Draco said, more amused than annoyed.

“Such a nice welcome,” Harry replied, walking forward.

Draco moved away from the wall and was wrapped in Harry’s arm. It was so different from Pansy’s hug. He took a deep breath and relaxed, breathing Harry’s welcoming scent, which was becoming home.

They hold each other for a while before Harry took a step back to see Draco’s face.

“I’ve been waiting for ages,” Draco complained. _You are stalling,_ a voice in Draco’s mind whispered but he ignored it.

“It was only five minutes,” Harry replied.

“Seven.”

Harry rolled his eyes but then his lips curled up. “Then I need to make up for the lost time.”

Draco’s skin tingled with excitement. “You better do, Potter,” he said, running a hand through Harry’s strands.

Harry leaned over and kissed him finally for the first time in weeks. Draco smiled in the middle of the kiss when he felt Harry’s hand wander under his robe in search of something and he leaned back.  “Are you looking for this?” he asked, pulling out the necklace.

Harry chuckled and touched the thin chain.

“It suits you.”

“Everything suits me.”

Harry shook his head fondly and then smirked. “You don’t gonna ask about Draco Jr?”

“Who?”

Harry looked more amused and Draco frowned. “I couldn’t bring him with me but he says hi.”

Draco’s cheek became red both from anger and embarrassment when he finally got what Harry was talking about. “You are talking about- you can’t call it that!”

“Mm, what about Dray then?”

“That’s even worse! Why does it to have a name? I bet that’s a muggle thing.”

“Draco Jr or Dray? What a tough decision.”

“Stop it, Potter!”

Harry smiled and leaned closer. “Make me.”

Draco rolled his eyes but he put a hand behind Harry’s neck anyway. “You will regret this,” he whispered, his lips brushing against Harry’s.

 

“You alright?” Harry asked after a while as Draco played with his hair.

They were sitting on the ground, Draco leaning against the wall while Harry lying down with his head on Draco’s lap.

Ok, here it was. . .

Draco gulped. “Peachy. . .” A knot in his throat prevented the right words from coming out. Besides. . . why should he spoil the peace of that moment? He could tell Harry the true later.

Harry looked up at him and opened his mouth but Draco was faster.

“I’ve to go,” Draco said, standing up suddenly.

Harry slipped on the floor and cursed under his breath.

“Hey, that hurt!”

“You are overreacting.”

“You are one to talk- where are you going now?”

“I told Pansy that I would be back early.”

“Doesn’t mean you can’t give a guy a warn!”

Draco turned around and kneeled before Harry. “Then I have to make up of it,” he said, quoting Harry’s words from earlier, and kissed Harry chastely on the lips. “See you tomorrow.”

Draco walked away, or maybe ran, and went back in the common room, promising himself he would tell Harry soon.

But another day passed without Draco saying anything, then a week followed by others and suddenly a month was gone. He wasn’t able to do it, he couldn’t help it. Draco’d rather write two essays for Professor McGonagall in a day than telling the truth. . . And then things went so well between him and Harry. He didn’t want to ruin everything.

What was wrong with procrastinating a little?

 

“Hey, Draco!”

Draco stopped and looked at Blaise sitting on the couch surrounded by the other Slytherin players. Blaise stood up and approached him. “What is it?” Draco asked.

“What are your intentions with the team?”

“Do you want to take my place now, Blaise?” Draco smirked. “Since you sucked at being Chaser.”

Blaise grimaced but he didn’t take the bait. “I just wanted to know if you will be there for the next practice.”

Draco shrugged. “I'll let you know.” He made his leave, but Blaise stopped him by an arm. “Seriously, Draco. Remember you're still part of the team.”

“How could I ever forget it,” Draco said, scrolling his hand away.

“I don’t know, it seems like you don’t care about the Slytherin House this year.”

“So nice for you to care,” Draco quipped, “thank for stepping up for our house’s honor.”

“Well, _thank you_ , then I’m waiting for you in the Quidditch camp. See you later, Draco.”

Blaise walked away without even giving him the time to answer and Draco groaned. He hated him.

 

It was a good day for Quidditch practice. The sky was almost clear, there were some clouds that sometimes hid the sun, but otherwise, they could practice without problems. Draco had to admit that he was enjoying it. Now, up in the sky, he realized how much he’d missed flying. He almost felt like a normal student again. 

He spun in the air but he slowed down when he heard the captain’s yell.

“Is that Potter?!”

Draco lowered his gaze and saw Harry, dressed in his red Quidditch uniform, walking slowly towards the team with a broom under his arm.

 _Merlin-_ _had he gone mad?!_

“This is not Gryffindor’s practice!” said Urquhart angrily, barring his way. “Why are you here?”

“He came to spy us,” suggested Goyle.

Harry rolled his eyes. “Your powers of deduction are stunning,” he said, “but I should remind you that you have already lost against us.”   

Harry walked past the captain, his lips were curled slightly as he went where Draco’d landed.

“ _Potter_ , why are you here?” Draco snapped. Then he remembered he was with his fellow Slytherin and added, “this is the wrong place if you lost your flock of sheep’s.” _Come on_ , he could be meaner than this.

“I want a rematch.”

Draco’s eyes widened. “What?!”

“We didn’t play the last time,” Harry continued like he was just talking about the weather. “So here I am.”

There was a moment of silence before Draco started to laugh. “Fine,” he agreed. “Blaise, bring us a Snitch.”

“Isn’t this against the rules?” asked the new Keeper which Draco didn’t remember the name.

“I thought this was the house of snakes and not of chickens,” said Harry with a grin.

Crabbe and Goyle raised their bats but Draco stopped them. “We’ll solve this in a match.” The two giants gave him confused looks.

“Right, listen to your pack leader, boys,” Harry snickered.

Draco glared at Harry. Did he have a death wish today?

“I wouldn’t be so cocky at your place, Potter,” Urquhart said, spiteful. “And you should ask me for permission first, Malfoy.”

Draco raised an eyebrow. “Why, are you going to stop me, _Captain_?

Blaise came forward, raising a hand in a peaceful manner. “Calm down everybody, and just give us a minute, Potter.”

Harry shrugged. He mounted on his broom and took off, not going too far.

“You think you can beat him, Draco?” Blaise asked quietly, looking skeptical.

Draco felt somewhat offended. “I **will** beat him.”

“Let’s be honest, your record of victories against him isn’t. . . brilliant, actually it’s totally lacking.”

Draco’s eyes narrowed and Blaise sighed. “Look, Draco, I just don’t want you to be humiliated again.”

“I’m not the one who couldn’t even score against _Ronald Weasley_ ,” Draco sneered. He stuck his nose in the air and raised his chin, challenging Blaise to say more.

“You better beat him, Malfoy,” Urquhart said, coming forward, “or I’ll really think about a definitive substitute.”

“Can we start now?” Harry asked, clearly tired of waiting.

“I’m ready to kick your ass, Potter.”

Harry’s brows furrowed and Draco just gave him his distinctive smirk before getting ready on the broom. Harry should have known he had this coming to him.

As Blaise gave them the signal, they kicked off and flew in the air. The only time Draco didn’t mind having messy hair was when he was on top of a broom as the wind was against him. Harry was already in front of him and Draco followed him through a cloud. They flew high into the sky and Draco stopped when Harry did the same. Nobody could hear them up there.

“You are out of your mind!” Draco shouted.

“Me?” Harry touched his chest, pretending to be innocent. “Why? What's wrong with a challenge among old enemies?”

“I thought we had passed that stage.”

“Yeah,” Harry grinned, “but they don’t know.”

Draco shook his head and then smirked. “All right _Potter_. Then get ready to be defeated!” Draco flew a few feet away and looked around for the Snitch. He could feel Harry’s scent not too far from him.

“That determined look in your eyes is really hot.”

Draco felt his cheek heat up. “Don’t distract me, Potter!”

“You know, I like this Draco Malfoy focused on finding the Snitch.”

Draco ignored him. It was clear that Harry was trying to distract him, but this time Draco will not let him win. Finally he saw it, a small golden dot behind Harry. Draco took off and went after the Snitch but Harry didn’t lose time and was already beside him. Damn Firebolt.

“This time I will beat you, Harry!”

“We'll see!”

The Snitch flew up, pointing straight to the sun. Draco had to close his eyes for a moment, and it was too late when he saw the Snitch changing his route and descending down to the field. Draco grimaced as he saw out of the corner of his eyes Harry starting to turn around. If he didn’t catch up Harry will surely get the Snitch before him. “Hey, Harry!” he shouted.

Harry looked at him and Draco grinned.

“I was thinking that we could move things forward after dinner.”

Harry’s jaw fell opened and he slowed down.

“What?!”

Draco took his chance, he turned upside down and without slowing down he made a backflip. He felt the bile in his mouth but it didn’t matter because now he was ahead. He increased the speed and as soon as he saw the Snitch in front of him he stretched out his hand and caught it.

“I did it!” he exclaimed excitedly, slowing down the speed. He had beaten Harry, well ok it wasn’t an official match but it didn’t matter, he had won!

Draco raised his fists in the air and when he touched the ground he was surrounded but his teammates. “Congratulations,” Urquhart said. “But I expect this result also in the next games.”

“If he will play at the next game.”

Draco froze. He turned slowly around and saw a very angry Professor McGonagall glaring at him.

“The Slytherin team can go.”

Draco’s teammates didn’t need to be asked twice and disappeared. Draco tried to get away as well but of course McGonagall didn’t let him.

“Not you Mr. Malfoy, and please Mr. Potter join us here.”

Harry came beside Draco, giving him a look.

“You two, what were you thinking?” McGonagall asked with severe eyes. 

“It was just an innocent match, Professor,” Harry replied.

“Innocent?!” McGonagall stared at them astonished. “Matches without the supervision of a professor are forbidden! And knowing you- I’m surprised that you are both unscathed.” She took a breath, and Draco was sure he had never seen her so stressed out. “Detention, for both of you, I want to see you in my office after dinner.”

“Shouldn’t be Professor Snape the one giving me detention?” asked Draco, or better demanded. Even though he wasn’t exactly on good terms with Snape now, he was better than McGonagall for detentions, at least for his house.

“So that Snape will you give just a soft punishment?” Harry asked back.

Draco’s lips pinched together. _Really?_ Where were his Alpha’s protective instincts now?

“It is Professor Snape, Mr. Potter and if you don’t want to be in detention for the rest of the year I suggest you to keep your mouth shut now, both of you,” McGonagall scolded them. “And now go get changed, no arguments- oh and thirty-five points from both your houses.”

Draco and Harry went quietly in their respective changing rooms under McGonagall watchful eyes. She thought that the moment she left they would step on each other’s throat. Maybe a few months earlier it would have been so. She left them alone only when they were back in the castle. But when they stepped into the Entrance Hall a bunch of Gryffindors and Slytherins surrounded Harry and Draco, overwhelming them with questions.

The news about the “illegal match” was already spreading.

Dinner didn’t go any better for Harry. Draco could see the Gryffindors send comments and dirty looks towards Harry while the Slytherins filled him with compliments. They didn’t even care if he had made them lost house points.

“-really what was Potter thinking?”

“Now he’ll stop to be a prat!”

“I wish I could have been there!”

Finally, after dinner, Draco escaped from his table and went to the first floor for detention. Harry was already there but he didn’t say anything, not even after McGonagall left them alone for a moment as they recopied old students registers. Draco had never understood the purpose of this kind of punishment.

He glanced at Harry who had his eyes glued to the table. Something told him it had to do with what he had said earlier. “About what I said in the pinch,” he started.

Harry stopped writing and raised his head.  “It’s ok, I was a jerk as well.”

“No, you don’t understand, I. . .” Draco took a breath. “Really, _really_ , meant it.”

“Oh. . .”

“You don’t have nothing to say?”

Harry peeked at the door and then grabbed Draco’s right hand. “Draco, I’ve always wanted to be with you- I mean not since ever, I- you get it.”

Draco tilted his head. “Then why didn’t you say anything?”

“Because I was waiting for you to be ready,” Harry said, squeezing his hand and Draco smiled. “You know, maybe I have always wanted you,” he admitted.

Harry got slaw-jawed and Draco enjoyed the dumb view. “You can’t say things like this here,” Harry said, flushed.

As they heard the door opening they got back to work like nothing had happened. Although Draco could peek the slight excitement in Harry’s scent for him.

“You were fast,” McGonagall said after one hour as she looked at their work and nodded satisfied. “You can both go.”

After they got out of the office, Harry took the invisible cloak and covered them up.

“It’s still valid for this night?” Harry asked.

Draco’s mouth went dry and he nodded because he couldn’t trust his voice. Harry smiled, grabbing his hand, and led the way. A few students were still around before the curfew started and Harry and Draco dodged them without problems.

They reached their favorite place and stared at each other with trepidation. Draco watched in wonder as Harry licked his lips and he couldn’t stop himself from reaching out and clashing their mouths together.

Harry tugged on his robe and Draco helped him to get rid of it. Draco’s robe was soon followed by Harry’s one, both too eager to touch each other skin. Harry kissed softly Draco’s lips one last time, then moved on to his neck and opened the first buttons of Draco’s shirt without undressing him. Draco held his breath, Harry’s light touch made his skin crawl. They looked at each other and Draco felt his heart beat faster and faster. He put his hand on Harry’s chest to feel the beat of his heart as well.

“Draco,” Harry whispered, wrapping his arm around Draco’s middle. “I want to feel you.” His lips touched Draco’s collarbone. “It drives me mad not feeling your scent.”

Harry started to unbutton his shirt and Draco froze. The dark mark! How could he have forgotten about it! “Wait,” Draco whispered as he felt the panic rising in him.

Harry leaned back. “You ok?” he asked softly.

“I don’t- it’s just,” Draco stammered and closed his eyes as he struggled to breathe.

“Hey Draco, calm down. Look at me, we stop here, ok?” Harry said worried and Draco opened his eyes.

“But Harry-”

“We don’t have to do it if you don’t want to.”

“It’s not that,” Draco muttered, lowering his head.

“Ok, then we’ll slow down,” Harry replied calmly, lifting Draco’s chin. “We don’t have to rush.”

His green eyes were so kind and, _oh Merlin_ , Draco hated himself for being such a coward. He couldn’t continue to hide like a turtle in his shell. Harry didn’t deserve it.

Draco took a step backward and, taking a deep breath, he raised his left sleeve.

The Dark Mark stood out on his pale skin like the full moon in the night sky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update again, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, thank you for your feedback and Happy Holidays!


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